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Cowell, 65, played a crucial role in Payne’s professional life as he helped create One Direction in 2010.
After Payne originally auditioned for “The X Factor” as a solo artist, Cowell paired him up in a group with fellow contestants Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson, officially creating the boy band beloved by fans across the world.
Payne’s former bandmates were all in attendance for Wednesday’s service to honor the late singer. At one point, Tomlinson and Malik stopped to chat outside, while Horan and Styles did the same.
The “Teardrops” singer’s girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, arrived at the service just moments before Payne’s four famous friends. She wore all black and walked in with Elizabeth Hurley’s son, Damian Hurley.
Shortly after all the guests arrived inside the intimate service, pallbearers were seen lifting Payne’s casket into the church after a horse-drawn carriage decked with floral arrangements carried it through the streets.
Payne’s funeral took place more than one month after he tragically died when he fell three stories from his Buenos Aires hotel room on Oct. 16. He was 31.
Shortly after Payne died, Cowell took to social media to share an emotional tribute and express how “devastated” and “heartbroken” he was.
“I feel empty,” he wrote in part via Instagram on Oct. 18. “And I want you to know how much love and respect I have for you. Every tear I have shed is a memory of you.”
Cowell described the late singer as “kind, funny, sweet, thoughtful, talented, humble, focused.”
