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The friends, family, and loved ones of Liam Payne gathered in Buckinghamshire yesterday, Wednesday, November 20, to bid a final goodbye to the 31-year-old at a private funeral.
According to the Daily Mail, dated November 20, 2024, Payne's family went to great lengths to honor the singer's favorite things at the funeral. The church was integrated with classic candles and flowers, as a horse-drawn carriage brought in Liam's coffin.
Furthermore, special touches were made to commemorate his interests—bowling and the superhero Batman—as well as his favorite role throughout his life, that of a father to his son with Cheryl, Bear Payne.
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The funeral comes more than a month after Liam Payne met his tragic death following a fall from his third-floor hotel room's balcony in Buenos Aires on October 16. Payne had been in Argentina since the beginning of October, on a vacation with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy. Cassidy left for Florida on October 14, while Liam had plans to follow her in a few days.
A floral arrangement of bowling pins was on display at Liam Payne's funeral
Liam Payne's loved ones were greeted with a floral arrangement of five bowling pins, which appeared to have been knocked over by a bowling ball. Fresh flowers of white, yellow, black, and red colors were used in the arrangement, and they were placed on a large tripod stand.
The Both Ways singer enjoyed bowling so much that he even spent his 31st birthday bowling with his family, weeks before his death, on August 29. A source told the Daily Mail about it, saying:
"Liam was with his mum in Manchester where they celebrated his birthday with family.They were still incredibly close and enjoyed spending time together bowling. Liam's family stayed with him for a few days at the Stock Exchange Hotel."
The source continued:
"'It's tragic to think that ended up being the last time they would celebrate his special day with him."
Payne's love for bowling was apparent to Kate Cassidy as well, who had posted a TikTok video of them shortly before the singer's death, jokingly captioning it, "He drags me to bowling at least four times a week."
Payne's love for Batman was also honored at his funeral
Another one of Liam Payne's favorite things that was highlighted at his funeral was Batman. All the cars arriving at the funeral had a Batman sticker stuck to the corner of their windshield, as a tribute to the singer's favorite DC character.
The Mirror UK reported on November 20 that Payne's love for Batman was well-documented, with the singer allegedly having a life-sized cutout of the crime fighter in his room. In 2013, Liam shared a selfie of himself in a Batman hat on X (then Twitter), captioning it:
"For those of you who have doubted me and now turn to hate I’d like to say one thing… I am Batman."
The Strip That Down singer also owned a very realistic Batman costume, which he wore to several Halloween parties between 2012 and 2019. Payne also celebrated one of his birthdays with a Batman-themed cake.
The hearse of the carriage that contained Liam Payne's coffin was also decorated to honor the former One Direction star, with two floral arrangements resting on each of its sides.
On one side was the word "son" formed with red roses, while on the other was "daddy" formed with white roses, representing his roles as a father and a son. Liam welcomed his son Bear with his ex-girlfriend, Cheryl Cole, in March 2017.
The star was 23 at the time and has been a proud father ever since. While Cole and Payne parted their ways roughly a year after Bear's birth, the two continued to co-parent him and lived close to each other so that both could get quality time with their kid.
Liam Payne's autopsy report revealed that the singer had died from the injuries sustained in a fall, in which he didn't have the reflex to protect himself, suggesting that Payne was either semi-conscious or unconscious at the time.
