The funeral of former One Direction star Liam Payne will take place on Wednesday, just over a month after he died in a fall from the balcony of his Buenos Aires hotel.
Payne, who shot to global fame with boy band One Direction, died at age 31, triggering tributes from fans around the world.
Payne’s body was handed over to his father earlier this month and flown back to England.
Several newspapers, including the Daily Mail and the Daily Mirror, said all four of Payne’s former One Direction bandmates, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan, would attend the funeral to pay their respects.
In a statement, the four said they were “completely devastated” by the former bandmate’s death.
“In time, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say. But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly. The memories we shared with him will be treasured forever. For now, our thoughts are with his family, his friends, and the fans who loved him alongside us. We will miss him terribly. We love you Liam,” they said.
The funeral will be a private ceremony for family and close friends.
A 911 call from a hotel employee on the day that Payne died warned that he had been acting aggressively and could have been under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
A post mortem revealed the former boy band member had traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his system when he died.
Three people have been charged in relation to his death.
Payne rose to fame alongside Styles, Tomlinson, Malik and Horan when Simon Cowell put them together to form One Direction on ITV talent show The X Factor in 2010.
He had first auditioned in 2008 when he was 14, singing Frank Sinatra's Fly Me To The Moon, with judge Cowell telling him to return to the talent show two years later.
In 2010 he impressed the judges with a rendition of Michael Buble's Cry Me A River before being put with four other solo hopefuls at the boot camp stage of the competition - the group which later became One Direction.
Payne, who was born in Wolverhampton, went on to launch a successful solo career, releasing his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019, which included the songs Polaroid and Strip That Down featuring Quavo.
One of his most well-known songs, For You, was a collaboration between him and singer Rita Ora for the film Fifty Shades Freed.
Payne is survived by his parents, two sisters, and his son Bear, whom he had with Girls Aloud singer Cheryl.
Payne’s girlfriend at the time of his death, Kate Cassidy, is also expected to attend the funeral.
