London: The former members of One Direction have reunited for the funeral of bandmate Liam Payne.
Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson joined friends and family at the service overnight (AEDT) for Payne, 31, who died after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires last month.
A horse-drawn carriage carried the coffin to St. Mary’s Church in Amersham, 40km northwest of London. Undertakers carried the dark blue casket with silver handles, topped with white roses, into the 800-year-old church for the private service.
Former One Direction band member Harry Styles leaves after the funeral of former bandmate Liam Payne in Amersham.Credit: Getty Images
The funeral location was not made public in advance to prevent a large crowd from gathering, though dozens of local people and fans still gathered nearby.
“Growing up, I was a massive fan of One Direction, so I almost felt like a little piece of the child in me was gone,” said 20-year-old Tara Lloyd, who works at the nearby Amersham Hospital.
The crowd fell silent when Payne’s parents, Geoff and Karen, emerged from a car to stand beside the carriage, which was topped with floral tributes reading “Son” and “Daddy.” Payne had a 7-year-old son, Bear, with the singer Cheryl Tweedy.
Among the mourners was Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy, actor and presenter James Corden, former soccer player Robbie Keane and music mogul Simon Cowell, who put One Direction together.
After the service, Cowell embraced Payne’s parents outside the church, before the late singer’s coffin was driven away in a black hearse.
