By Ben Macquarie
AMERSHAM, England (Reuters) – Former members of the boy band “One Direction” were among mourners at the funeral of their bandmate Liam Payne on Wednesday, just a month after the singer died at the age of 31.
Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson joined Payne’s family and friends for the service at the private church in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, northwest of London.
Payne’s former partner, fellow pop star Cheryl, with whom he has a son who is now seven, was pictured leaving the service.
The singer-songwriter was found dead after falling from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, sending an outpouring of grief to fans around the world.
His coffin arrived at the church in a white carriage drawn by two white horses and was decorated with floral tributes bearing the words “Son” and “Daddy”.
Attendees included Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy, actor and TV host James Corden, and Simon Cowell, the music mogul who produced One Direction for Britain’s X Factor talent show.
The group rose to global fame in the 2010s after appearing on the show and became one of the best-selling boy bands of all time.
With their cropped hair and youthful charm, the band members became teen idols with hit singles like “What Makes You Beautiful”, “Live When We’re Young”, “Best Song Ever” and “Story of My Life”. became
Fan Victoria Horwood, 28, speaking outside the church, said she had followed Payne since he appeared on The X Factor and was left shaken by his death. “I just wanted to respect myself,” she said.
Payne, who was still a teenager when One Direction became a global success, struggled with the pressures of fame, and later opened up about his problems with alcohol.
“Don’t get me wrong, we had the best time ever but there were moments where … you don’t realize you have a choice at that point,” he said in 2021. “There is a sacrifice for that.”
He began a solo career in 2016 after One Direction broke up and released his debut album in 2019.
Authorities in Argentina have charged three people in connection with Payne’s death after an autopsy found traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his system when he died.
