Liam Payne funeral reunites surviving One Direction members for first time in nearly a decade

"I have found myself talking out loud to you," former bandmate Zayn Malik wrote in a heartbreaking tribute

By Kelly McClure

Nights & Weekends Editor

Published November 20, 2024 3:02PM (EST)

Former One Direction band members Harry Styles (C) and Niall Horan leave after attending the funeral service of the late One Direction singer Liam Payne, at a St Mary's church in Amersham, west of London on November 20, 2024. (JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Former One Direction band members Harry Styles (C) and Niall Horan leave after attending the funeral service of the late One Direction singer Liam Payne, at a St Mary's church in Amersham, west of London on November 20, 2024. (JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)

More than a month after the tragic death of former One Direction star, Liam Payne, his family and friends were finally able to see him laid to rest at a funeral on Wednesday, in the English countryside northwest of London, marking the first time in nearly a decade that the singer's former bandmates Harry StylesZayn MalikNiall Horan and Louis Tomlinson joined together as a group.

CNN describes a service that included a horse-drawn carriage carrying Payne’s dark blue casket with silver fittings, adorned with two floral tributes draped on top, one reading “son” while the other read “daddy.” Among the attendees were Payne's ex, Girls Aloud singer Cheryl, with whom he shared 7-year-old son Bear Grey, as well as James Corden and One Direction co-creator Simon Cowell, according to People

As CNN details in their coverage of Payne's funeral, Styles was the first One Direction member to arrive and was the last of the band to leave after the service. 

Malik, who Radar reports decided to postpone his UK tour dates — which were due to start this week — so that he could attend the funeral, posted a final goodbye to his bandmate on Instagram, writing, "Liam, I have found myself talking out loud to you, hoping you can hear me, I can't help but think selfishly that there was so many more conversations for us to have in our lives. I never got to thank you for supporting me through some of the most difficult times in my life. When I was missing home as a 17-year-old kid you would always be there with a positive outlook and reassuring smile and let me know you were my friend and that I was loved."

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