All four of his former One Direction bandmates are anticipated to attend Liam Payne’s burial, which will be attended by his ex-girlfriend Cheryl and their seven-year-old son Bear.
Payne passed away on October 16 at the age of 31 following a fall from a hotel balcony on the third story in the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires.
The first well-known mourners to be spotted at his burial, which is being conducted in a church in the Home Counties, were Damian Hurley, 22, Kimberley Walsh, 43, and Nicola Roberts, 39.
Louis Tomlinson, 32; Zayn Malik, 31; Niall Horan, 31; and Harry Styles, 30 are all anticipated to attend what is said to be their first public gathering together since their most recent performance in 2015. It’s also said that Payne’s girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, will be attending.
A church source said a choir and musicians will perform at the service, which is set to start at 1 pm. One of the floral presentations shows bowling pins and a ball – a nod to his fondness of bowling, with Ms Cassidy saying he did four times a week.
The site of the funeral has been kept a secret, and locals were only made aware of it when ‘no parking’ signs were placed around the church.
As they patrolled the area, two traffic enforcement officials issued citations to any motorist who disregarded the signage.
Payne travelled to Argentina in September where he watched ex-bandmate Niall Horan perform and also saw his close friend Rogelio ‘Roger’ Nores. He had extended his visit to renew his visa to live in the US when the tragedy happened.
The entry of the church which is hosting the service has been adorned with candle lanterns and white roses that have been positioned in surrounding shrubbery.
His family have gone to great lengths to put together the perfect service and give him the send-off he deserves.
Even though Liam was a worldwide celebrity, Geoff and Karen would always think of him as their little boy. The day is going to be quite challenging.
Following Payne’s passing, Tomlinson, Malik, Horan, and Styles issued a joint statement in which they expressed their “complete devastation.”
‘In time, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say,’ they said.
‘But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly.
‘The memories we shared with him will be treasured forever. For now, our thoughts are with his family, his friends, and the fans who loved him alongside us.
‘We will miss him terribly. We love you Liam – Louis, Zayn, Niall and Harry.’
A little boy is saying goodbye to his dad today. A mum and dad are saying goodbye to their little boy. That’s all that matters and I sincerely hope the media circus leaves them alone to do so in peace, but sadly the paparazzi were already there outside the church.
This will be the most trying day of tiny Bears’ life, therefore the photographers should avoid getting in his face. This little child deserves his privacy and doesn’t need others to see his face.
It’s just traumatising thinking about it, and it will be traumatising with the photographers there, especially when this little boy will be coming to terms with never seeing his father again. It’s such a hard concept for an adult to accept, even harder for a seven-year-old boy, and it would be basic decency by the paps to have just stayed away, and Cheryl must be beside herself endeavouring to protect her son.
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