A fund has been set up to raise money for the cremation of Tony Dyson, the beloved creator of Star Wars robot R2-D2 who died in Malta recently.

Mr Dyson's family and friends said they need to raise €6,500 to fly the scientist over to the UK for cremation since Malta still does not offer such a service.

"We are all grieving his passing. He was a wonderful man who was full of life. He was engaging, entertaining, and drew people in with his wonderful stories about the making of R2-D2 as well as his other entrepreneurial pursuits. Sadly, as wonderfully savvy he was with creating, money wasn't one of his strong suits," his friends posted on the GoFundMe site. 

Sadly, as wonderfully savvy he was with creating, money wasn't one of his strong suits

"His wish was to be donated to science, because he wanted people to look into his brilliant brain. Sadly, due to the circumstances surrounding his death (he died alone in his apartment of natural causes), he wasn't found quickly enough to make this happen. We believe his next wish was to be cremated. We have gotten an invoice for this to happen, and the cost is close to $8,000. Needless to say, this is more money than most of his friends have in hand."

Malta does not do cremation, so his body has to be shipped to his home country, England.

The family stressed that the money raised will only go to his cremation expenses, nothing else.

"Time is of the essence because he is currently in a mortuary in Malta waiting for transport. We have in hand, pictures of Tony when he attended conferences and comic cons. Sadly, they are not autographed, but I will gladly mail you a picture thanking you for your donation."

Mr Dyson, 68, was found dead at his home in Gozo on March 2. Known for his infectious sense of humour, Mr Dyson had been living in Malta since the 1990s and last December appeared at the comic convention.