James Corden looks sombre as he arrives for Liam Payne's funeral after the One Direction star's tragic death

 James Corden looks sombre as he arrives for Liam Payne's funeral after the One Direction star's tragic death

James Corden looked sombre as he arrived for Liam Payne's funeral on Wednesday afternoon. 

Liam died aged 31 on October 16 after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires.

His close pal actor and presenter James, 46, was among many stars who came to show their support as he was laid to rest. 

His One Direction bandmates Harry Styles, 30, Niall Horan, 31, Zayn Malik, 31, and Louis Tomlinson, 32, were also seen walking into the church for what is their first public meeting as a group since their last concert in 2015. 

A church source said a choir and musicians will perform at the service, which began at 1pm.

One of the floral displays near the church showed bowling pins and a ball - a nod to his love of bowling, which his girlfriend Kate Cassidy said he did four times a week.

After his death James paid tribute to Liam saying: 'Talking about Liam in the past tense is utterly heartbreaking. 

'He was such a loving and kind soul. I will treasure the moments I got to spend with him. My thoughts are with his family today x.'

Liam had appeared on The Late Late Show as a guest with Corden in 2020, and also took part in his Carpool Karaoke segment. 

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.

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

Payne 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. 

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