Girls Aloud stars Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh were among the first mourners to arrive at Liam Payne’s funeral, as the One Direction star was finally laid to rest on Wednesday.

Nicola was greeted with a kiss by Simon Jones, the former PR for One Direction who now acts for her bandmate Cheryl, mother of Liam’s young son Bear.

Other mourners greeted her as they stood at the entrance to the church waiting for the doors to open.

The road outside the church was closed to traffic with mourners being dropped at a side door before walking past gravestones to the main entrance.

The arrivals were being carefully managed by the private security firm.

Girls Aloud stars Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh were among the first mourners to arrive at Liam Payne 's funeral, as the One Direction star was finally laid to rest on Wednesday
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Girls Aloud stars Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh were among the first mourners to arrive at Liam Payne ‘s funeral, as the One Direction star was finally laid to rest on Wednesday

Kimberley (pictured) at Liam's funeral, following his untimely death on October 16
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Kimberley (pictured) at Liam’s funeral, following his untimely d3ath on October 16


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Cheryl was joined by her Girls Aloud bandmates as she prepared to bid an emotional farewell to her ex Liam

Liam, pictured in Dubai last year, died after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires
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Liam, pictured in Dubai last year, di3d after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires

A small crowd of onlookers had gathered, but most were local residents rather than young One Direction fans.

Harry Styles, 30, Niall Horan, 31, Zayn Malik, 31, and Louis Tomlinson, 32, were all present in what was believed to be their first public meeting as a group since their last concert in 2015. Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy, 25, was also in attendance.

A church source said a choir and musicians performed at the service. One of the floral displays shows bowling pins and a ball – a nod to his love of bowling, which Kate said he did four times a week.

The funeral’s location was a closely guarded secret, and local residents only realising it was taking place when ‘no parking’ signs were erected around the church.

Two traffic enforcement officers patrolled the area handing out tickets to any drivers ignoring the signs.

Liam travelled to Argentina in September where he watched former bandmate Niall Horan perform and also saw his close friend Rogelio ‘Roger’ Nores. He had extended his stay to renew his visa to live in the US when the tragedy occurred.

The entrance of the church which is hosting the service has been decorated with candle lanterns and white roses that have been arranged in surrounding shrubbery.

One source told The Sun: ‘His family have gone to great lengths to put together the perfect service and give him the send off he deserves.

Cheryl was seen arriving for the emotional church service
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Cheryl was seen arriving for the emotional church service

Nicola was joined by Simon Jones , the former PR for One Direction who now acts for Cheryl
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Nicola was joined by Simon Jones , the former PR for One Direction who now acts for Cheryl

She and Kimberley arrived for the funeral to support Liam's ex Cheryl
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She and Kimberley arrived for the funeral to support Liam’s ex Cheryl

Kimberley and many other guests shielded their eyes with sunglasses as they headed into the church
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Kimberley and many other guests shielded their eyes with sunglasses as they headed into the church

The road outside the church was closed to traffic with mourners being dropped at a side door before walking past gravestones to the main entrance
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The road outside the church was closed to traffic with mourners being dropped at a side door before walking past gravestones to the main entrance

The funeral's location has been a closely guarded secret, and local residents only realised it was taking place when 'no parking' signs were erected around the church
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The funeral’s location has been a closely guarded secret, and local residents only realised it was taking place when ‘no parking’ signs were erected around the church

‘Liam may have been a global superstar but to Geoff and Karen he will always be their little boy. It is going to be an incredibly difficult day.’

In a joint statement released following Payne’s d3ath, Louis, Zayne, Niall and Harry said they were ‘completely devastated.’

‘In time, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say,’ they said.

‘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 – Louis, Zayn, Niall and Harry.’

Louis, Harry and Zayn all later released separate tributes.

Styles wrote on Instagram that he was ‘truly devastated’ and will ‘miss him always’.

‘His greatest joy was making other people happy and it was an honour to be alongside him as he did it.