Celebrity

Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban Say Tearful Goodbye to Her Father in a 'True Family Affair'

"It was very touching," a close family friend tells PEOPLE

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Published on September 20, 2014 09:50AM EDT

Tears flowed as Nicole Kidman and her family said goodbye to her father, Antony, at a funeral in Sydney on Friday.

The Oscar winner paid tribute to the clinical psychologist, who died while on a trip to Singapore on Sept. 12, during an emotional speech at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in the Sydney suburb of Lavender Bay.

“He was calm, he was wise, he was self-restrained and he was generous,” she said in a speech, according to the Daily Telegraph. “He was a good man, a compassionate man, a strong man, a man that was always there for me. He was my thinker, confidante, my friend and my protector.”

Kidman’s husband, Keith Urban, 46, performed an acoustic version of “Amazing Grace,” asking the crowd to join in.

The actress started singing and she and Urban “sounded amazing together,” a close family friend tells PEOPLE. When the country star finished playing, Kidman mouthed the words “thank you” to her husband, according to the Telegraph.

“Keith was amazing, he organized everything on the day with [Nicole’s sister] Antonia’s husband, Craig,” the friend says. “The whole day was a celebration of Antony and an incredible tribute to his amazing life.”

In her speech, Kidman, 47, also touched on how her father supported her after her 2001 split from Tom Cruise.

“He was on the plane hours after I got divorced,” she said, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. “He came to stay with me, looking after me for weeks.”

Kidman told the mourners, who included her friend Russell Crowe, that her father had visited her just three weeks ago in New York. She had returned home to find that he’d eaten all the pizza they were going to have for dinner.

“I am so grateful he came to New York,” she said. “And I’m so glad he ate all that pizza.”

She tearfully recounted the times she’d tried to give her down-to-earth dad expensive gifts, like a car and watch, which he’d refused.

“I’d send him a Prada shirt and he wouldn’t even look at the label,” she said. “He is the reason I can’t walk past someone on the street with their hands out without giving.”

Kidman and Urban’s oldest daughter, Sunday, 6, recited a poem with her cousin Sybella, 7. “It was very touching,” the friend says. “They spoke so well. Seven of [Antony’s] eight grandchildren spoke beautifully. It was a true family affair.”

At the end of the 90-minute service, the Seekers’ “The Carnival Is Over” played as the coffin left the church, carried by pallbearers including Crowe and Urban, who struggled to maintain his composure.

“When it was time to put the coffin in the hearse and say goodbye, only the family were invited to this part of the funeral,” the friend tells PEOPLE. “Nicole was very distraught, and Keith really comforted her at this poignant moment and gave her a kiss. It was very touching.”

After the funeral, about 70 invited guests returned to the couple’s two-story apartment in Lavender Bay. Urban brought out his guitar after a while and everyone sang and danced to old Beatles and Elton John hits.

“Keith made sure everything ran smoothly so Nicole and the family could relax,” the friend says.