Cheryl Attends Ex Liam Payne's Funeral After Sharing Heartbreaking Plea for Their 7-Year-Old Son

Mar. 15, 2025

Cherylpaid her respects to ex-boyfriendLiam Payneathis funeralon Wednesday, Nov. 20, attending the service alongside her Girls Aloud bandmates.

The singer, who welcomedson Bearwith Payne in 2017, was seen exiting the One Direction star’s funeral in England behind his parents,Karen and Geoff Payne.

Her Girls Aloud bandmates Kimberley Walsh and Nicola Roberts were also in attendance as the singer was laid to rest, and both were seen hugging Payne’s ex-bandmateHarry Styles.Niall Horan,Zayn MalikandLouis Tomlinsonwere also on hand, as were friends likeJames Cordenand Payne’s girlfriendKate Cassidy.

Cheryl attends Liam Payne’s funeral in England on Nov. 20, 2024.Jonathan Brady/Getty

Jonathan Brady/Getty

Payne, 31,died on Oct. 16after falling from the balcony of his hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Two days later, Cheryl shared a photo of him and their 7-year-old son to Instagram, asking fans toplease respect their family’s privacy.

“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,” she wrote. “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.”

Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles and Niall Horan attend Liam Payne’s funeral on Nov. 20, 2024 in England.Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty; Karwai Tang/WireImage (3)

Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty; Karwai Tang/WireImage (3)

She continued, “What is troubling my spirit the most is that one day Bear will have access to the abhorrent reports and media exploitation we have seen in the past two days. It is breaking my heart further that I cannot protect him from that in his future.”

Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne in London in 2018.Dave Benett/Getty

Dave Benett/Getty

Cheryl and Payne first met in 2008 on the set ofThe X Factor, where Payne was a contestant and Cheryl was a judge. Theystarted dating in 2016, and welcomed their son a year later. They broke up in 2018, but remained close co-parents.

“I couldn’t ask [for] someone better. The relationship we have with each other now as friends has only grown more," Payne said about Cheryl on Logan Paul’sImpaulsivepodcast in 2022. “We broke up for a reason and now, she gives me full autonomy of my own life to be able to go and do what I do and at the same time I know he’s been taken care of because he’s all she cares about. You couldn’t ask for more.”

A preliminary autopsy report found that Payne sustained multiple “internal and external” injuries in the fall from his balcony, and the National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office later said that he was “not fully conscious or was experiencing a state of noticeable decrease or loss of consciousness at the time of the fall.”

source: people.com