Cheryl made one devastatingly sad final vow to the father of her son, Liam Payne, during his funeral on Wednesday afternoon.
The Girls Aloud singer joined mourners yesterday, including One Direction members Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan, to say a final goodbye to the late singer at St Mary’s Church in Amersham, Buckinghamshire. It comes one month after he tragically fell from his hotel balcony and died in Buenos Aires on October 16.
Cheryl is believed to have helped plan the funeral with Liam’s grieving parents Geoff and Karen Payne. The location of the service had expected to be in his hometown of Wolverhampton, but Buckinghamshire was an important place to Liam as it was where he, Cheryl and Bear lived. Following their split, Liam bought a house near Cheryl’s in the village of Chalfont Saint Giles so that he could be close to his son.
According to sources, Liam’s family wanted him to have a dignified and “perfect” send-off after he died in “such a horrible way”. Cheryl, who friends say is “devastated” by Liam’s death made a heartbreaking final vow to him for the sake of their seven-year-old son, Bear.
Speaking to MailOnline, a friend said the singer has promised that their child will never forget his father. Her vow comes as the extent of Bear’s loss was shown yesterday when Liam’s coffin arrived at the Home Counties church in a horse-drawn carriage with two floral tributes placed on top. While one which read “son”, another heartbreaking tribute from Bear read “Daddy”.
Friends of the singer told the news outlet that Cheryl is “dreadfully sad” and added: “She has her own grief, but she also has a little boy who won’t see his daddy again, and that is just heartbreaking,” they said. The insider said that while Cheryl and Liam split in 2018 after two years together, they were “bonded” over their mutual love for their son.
Cheryl shared a tribute to her former partner just days after his death on Instagram, telling fans she has to “face the reality of never seeing his father again”.
Sharing a black and white picture of Payne in bed with his son, Cheryl said: “As I try to navigate this earth shattering event, and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, I’d like to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being.
“Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7 year old son. A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again.”
The former couple appeared to be on good terms at the time of Liam’s death, with the Teardrops singer having constantly praised his ex-girlfriend for being the “best mum in the world ” and allowing him to pursue his music career while juggling responsibilities as a father.
Liam’s send-off yesterday was also attended by his girlfriend at the time of his death, Kate Cassidy. It marked what is likely the first time she met his parents, despite the pair having dated since October 2022. She was accompanied by Elizabeth Hurley’s son, Damian.
Kate flew with Liam to Buenos Aires in October. However, she was not with him at the time of his death, as she had flown home to Miami just four days before he died. She has briefly spoken about her heartache following his death and told fans that she and Liam had plans to marry in the coming years.
Simon Cowell, James Corden, and Adrian Chiles were also among the many stars who attended Liam’s funeral. The former X Factor boss was left troubled after the service and was comforted by Liam’s dad Geoff.
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