One Direction stars gather for funeral of ex-bandmate Liam Payne
CNN
By Sana Noor Haq and Rob Picheta, CNN
Amersham, England (CNN) — Liam Payne’s family, friends and former bandmates have come together to pay tribute to the British singer at his funeral in England on Wednesday, just over a month after the One Direction star died age 31 in Argentina.
His former bandmates – Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson – attended the private service at St. Mary’s Church in the town of Amersham, northwest of London. The stone brick church was decorated with white roses and candle holders.
Each of Payne’s former bandmates trickled into the venue on Wednesday, where several dozen fans and onlookers lined a quaint street in the picturesque town.
The members of the public stood silently as they observed the guests arriving. Styles was the first One Direction member to emerge from a dark vehicle; he glanced towards the massed media before walking into the church.
He was joined by TV host and actor James Corden. Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy and his former partner, Cheryl Tweedy, with whom he shares 7-year-old son Bear, were also among the mourners.
Just after 1 p.m. local time (8 a.m. ET), a horse-drawn carriage arrived at the church carrying Payne’s dark blue casket with silver fittings. Two floral tributes adorned the top of the white carriage, one reading “son” while the other read “daddy.”
The late singer’s mother wept and his father stood stoically, watching as their son’s coffin was brought inside.
Former Girls Aloud singers Kimberley Walsh and Nicola Roberts supported their former bandmate Tweedy by joining guests to pay their respects.
Following the private service, a hearse pulled up to the church entrance and pallbearers brought out the casket once more. A procession of mourners, dressed in black, walked along a narrow pathway outside.
Simon Cowell, the music mogul who famously helped assemble One Direction more than a decade ago, cried and embraced Payne’s parents in front of the church.
Payne died on October 16 after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Payne had alcohol, cocaine, and a prescription antidepressant in his system, according to the country’s public prosecutor’s office, which launched an investigation. Three people are facing preliminary charges for crimes related to his death.
The musician spoke publicly about his challenges with substance abuse and his mental health. In the summer of 2023, he said he was marking six months of sobriety after completing treatment in a US facility. Later that year, he delayed his tour after suffering a kidney infection.
‘He had so much more to give’
Payne soared to global fame as part of One Direction, the group that was created on the British talent show “The X Factor” in 2010. They became a global phenomenon as the first group to have its first four albums debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and were known for songs like “What Makes You Beautiful,” “Best Song Ever” and “Story of My Life.”
He and his former colleagues – Malik, Styles, Horan and Tomlinson – subsequently embarked on solo careers, after going on an “indefinite hiatus” in 2016. The band remains one of the best-selling boy bands of all time, selling more than 70 million records worldwide.
The quartet were “completely devastated” over his death, according to a joint statement on Instagram.
“We will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly,” Malik, Styles, Horan and Tomlinson posted on social media. “The memories we shared with him will be treasured forever.
“We will miss him terribly. We love you Liam.”
Many fans had hoped for years that One Direction – a band that created pandemonium and achieved wild chart success – would one day reunite.
The tragic sight of four bandmates arriving for Payne’s funeral underscored the sudden and devastating nature of his passing.
“I was so gobsmacked. It brought tears to my eyes,” Caroline Jordan, 58, told CNN on Wednesday. She had held her wedding inside St. Mary’s Church, and had followed Payne and his bandmates since they first formed on “The X Factor.”
“I’ve watched him from the minute they performed as a band,” she said. “He had so much more to give.”
Victoria Horwood, 28, said she drove past Payne’s house each morning as she took her child to school. His music “helped me through a lot of hard times,” Horwood told CNN, and she attended several of One Direction’s concerts.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
