Hundreds gather in London to mourn death of One Direction singer Liam Payne

Vigils also held in Paris, Sydney, New York as fans grieved for Payne, 31, who died in Argentina on Wednesday after fall from hotel balcony

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Fans of former One Direction singer Liam Payne observe a minute’s silence beside the Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens, adjacent to Hyde Park in London on Sunday at a memorial following the singer’s death earlier in the week. Photo: AFP

Published: 4:53am, 21 Oct 2024

Hundreds gathered on Sunday in London’s Kensington Gardens to mourn Liam Payne as fans around the world grieved for the One Direction singer who died this week.

Directioners, as supporters of the massively successful boy band are known, left tributes in London, Glasgow, Paris, Sydney and New York this weekend as they celebrated the life of the 31-year-old who died on Wednesday after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina

In London, they clapped and sang after gathering near a statue of Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up created by author JM Barrie. The mourners, mostly young women, left heart-shaped balloons, photographs and flowers at the base of the statue, which sits next to a narrow path next to a waterway known as The Long Water.

People gather during a vigil to celebrate Payne’s life at Washington Square Park in New York on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

Mindful of the crowds in the limited space, organisers asked fans to leave their tributes then move away to allow others to approach the statue.

Fans Lauren Anderson and Natasha Bradley, both 23, said they wanted to be with others who shared their grief.

“Your parents, they don’t really understand how much [One Direction] really meant to you growing up,” Bradley said, explaining why she came to the park.

The vigils followed those that took place outside the Casa Sur Hotel in the chic Palermo neighbourhood of Argentina’s capital immediately after Payne fell from his third-floor hotel room. The four surviving members of One Direction issued a joint statement saying they were “completely devastated” by the death of their bandmate.