Instead of bringing flowers, those who attended the memorial service of Eusebius McKaiser were requested to bring books – one of his great loves – to be donated to a charity of his family's choosing.

The request was just one of the many ways the broadcaster, author and political analyst was remembered for his intellectual prowess and eloquence in communicating his sometimes radical and passionate ideas.

The memorial service was held in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

It was interspersed with audio clips from his time as a radio host, many of them provoking bittersweet laughter from his loved ones.

TimesLive editor Makhudu Sefara spoke about McKaiser's talent as a journalist, his thought-provoking opinion pieces, and his attention to detail.

Sefara recalled that while struggling to come to grips with the news of McKaiser's death, he knew the broadcaster would have wanted the team to set aside their emotions and break the news first.

"We called him an intellectual machine because when he was on to something, he didn't stop," said Sefara.

"He was a great gift to us at Arena Holdings."

Sefara added that McKaiser had always loved books. He would arrive home from studying with bags full of tomes instead of clothes, much to the amazement of his family, and his grandmother – who had never encouraged his reading – often proudly asked him how many pages he had finished in his last read.

The author died suddenly last month after a suspected epileptic seizure.

News24 previously reported that family spokesperson Deon Hilpert said McKaiser had epilepsy for the past three years.

Hilpert recalled that McKaiser always had his nose in books when he was a child and described him as a sweet, quiet boy.