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The husband and two young children of Dame Deborah James have left church today after paying a heartfelt farewell to the cancer campaigner alongside family, friends and celebrities including McFly’s Tom Fletcher, Lorraine Kelly and Gaby Roslin.
Hugo Poland Bowen, 14, who carried his mother’s wicker coffin into the church, read a poem he had written himself while his 12-year-old sister Eloise also gave a reading.
Husband Sebastien delivered a eulogy and family friend and classically-trained jazz singer Natalie Rushdie, who is married to novelist Salmon Rushdie’s son Zafar, sung Tell Me It’s Not True.
The family came out of the church in silence and bowed their heads before leaving for a private wake, as Dame Deborah’s coffin was driven away from the church.
Before the service, the coffin pulled up at the church in a vintage Rolls-Royce hearse followed by more than a dozen members of her family, including Sebastien, Hugo and Eloise.
They were greeted by the vicar of St Mary’s Church in Barnes, south-west London, before Sebastien and Hugo helped to carry the coffin, adorned with a rose that was named in her honour, into the church.
Dame Deborah, a podcast host and mother of two who became known as Bowelbabe – after her social media handle – died last month aged 40 after being diagnosed with bowel cancer today in 2016.
Earlier today, TV presenters Kelly and Roslin – who were both friends of Dame Deborah – were seen filing into the church alongside family members carrying a wreath of white flowers.
A note attached to the flowers said: ‘Deborah, thank you to our extraordinary friend. You, together with Seb, Eloise and Hugo [her husband and children] are such an important part of our family, we will love and miss you forever.’
They also carried a music sheet for the song Tell Me It’s Not True by Blood Brothers with a picture of Dame Deborah.
Singer Tom Fletcher and his podcaster wife Giovanna were pictured holding hands as they arrived. The church bells chimed at 12.30pm ahead of the intimate service, which began at 1pm with readings and music from relatives.
Dame Deborah’s husband, Sebastien, and children, Hugo and Eloise, leave St Mary’s church with family following her service today
Pallbearers carried her wicker coffin into a waiting vintage Rolls Royce following this afternoon’s service in Barnes
TV presenters Lorraine Kelly (left) and Gaby Roslin (right – in sunglasses) are seen leaving the church today
McFly’s Tom Fletcher leaving today’s funeral service in south-west London hand in hand with his podcaster wife, Giovanna
During the service, family friend and classically-trained jazz singer Natalie Rushdie, who is married to novelist Salmon Rushdie’s son Zafar, sung Tell Me It’s Not True
Dame Deborah’s husband, Sebastien, and children, Hugo and Eloise, leave St Mary’s church with family following her service today
Hugo Poland Bowen, 14, read a poem he had written himself while his 12-year-old sister Eloise (right) also gave a reading
Family members including Dame Deborah’s husband Sebastien and children Hugo and Eloise outside St Mary’s following the service
Dame Deborah’s wicker coffin – adorned with a rose that was named in her honour – is seen being carried out of the church by pallbearers
The family came out of the church in silence and bowed their heads before leaving for a private wake, as Dame Deborah’s coffin was driven away from the church
Dame Deborah died last month aged 40 after being diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016. She became known as Bowelbabe, after her social media channel
The podcast host and mother of two, who became known as Bowelbabe, her social media handle, died last month aged 40 after being diagnosed with the disease in 2016
Dame Deborah, a former deputy headteacher, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016 and subsequently kept her nearly one million Instagram followers up to date with her treatments.
Her candid posts about her progress and diagnosis, including videos of her dancing her way through treatment, won praise from the public and media alike.
Dame Deborah revealed in early May that she had stopped active treatment and was seeing out her final days at her parents’ home in Woking, Surrey.
Dame Deborah James’ husband, Sebastien, and children, Hugo, 14, and 12-year-old Eloise, are pictured arriving at her funeral service today
Hugo, Sebastien and Eloise led mourners today for the intimate service at St Mary’s Church in Barnes, south-west London
Sebastien and son Hugo were among a small group of family who carried her wicker coffin into St Mary’s Church in south-west London
Dame Deborah’s coffin was driven to the church in a vintage Rolls-Royce hearse as more than a dozen members of her family walked in procession behind
Dame Deborah had a rose named in her honour which went on display at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show earlier this year. The same type of rose lay on top of her coffin
Sebastien and son Hugo were among the pallbearers who carried the wicker coffin, adorned with the rose that bears her name, into the church in silence
Mourners carry the wicker coffin into St Mary’s Church on a bright, sunny afternoon in Barnes, south-west London
McFly’s Tom Fletcher with his wife, Giovanna, were among the mourners gathering at St Mary’s Church today for the funeral of Dame Deborah James
Family and close friends – including Lorraine Kelly – arrived at St Mary’s Church in Barnes, west London, ahead of the service this afternoon afternoon
Gaby Roslin, who rose to fame co-presenting The Big Breakfast on Channel 4 in the 1990s, was also among the mourners
Another well-wisher carried an order of service and a page with the music to Tell Me It’s Not True by the Blood Brothers
She received end-of-life care with her husband, Sebastien, and their two children, 14-year-old son Hugo and 12-year-old daughter Eloise, by her side,
In her final months, the presenter of the BBC podcast You, Me And The Big C raised almost £7 million for cancer research, with the amount climbing further following her death.
Dame Deborah was made a dame for her ‘tireless’ work improving awareness of the disease, with the honour conferred by the Duke of Cambridge, who joined her family for afternoon tea and champagne at home.
Her death was announced on June 28 with a message saying she had died peacefully, surrounded by her family.
William and Kate, charities, celebrities and many whose lives have been affected by cancer shared tributes.
The coffin drove slowly down Church Road in Barnes, south-west London, followed by Dame Deborah’s family members
Her husband and two young children led the procession, with more than a dozen other relatives following behind
The hearse as it nears St Mary’s Church, which dates back to the 12th century before being partially destroyed in a fire in the 1970s
Her coffin arrived in a vintage Rolls-Royce hearse as more than a dozen members of family walked in procession behind
The church bells chimed at 12.30pm ahead of the service, which began at 1pm and is featuring readings and music from relatives
Hugo, Sebastien and Eloise following the hearse as it neared St Mary’s, an Anglican church in the south-west London suburb of Barnes
Dame Deborah’s death was announced on June 28 with a message saying she had died peacefully, surrounded by her family
Today’s service was an intimate occasion attended by family and close friends of the campaigner, who raised more than £7m for charity
Pallbearers carry the coffin of Dame Deborah James as it arrives for her funeral service at St Mary’s Church in Barnes
Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie’s son Zafar and his wife Natalie arriving at St Mary’s Church in Barnes, west London
Close friends and family arriving at St Mary’s Church in Barnes, west London, ahead of the service this afternoon
Mourners arrive at Dame Deborah’s funeral today. The former deputy headteacher was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2016 and subsequently kept her nearly one million Instagram followers up to date with her treatments
The church bells chimed at 12.30pm ahead of the intimate service, which began at 1pm with readings and music from relatives
The intimate service begun at 1pm with readings and music from relatives (pictured are mourners arriving at the church)
She was made a dame by the Duke of Cambridge at her family home, with William praising her for ‘going above and beyond to make a very special memory’. Also pictured is her husband, Sebastien, and their children, Hugo and Eloise
And her Bowelbabe Just Giving fund is STILL going – having soared past £7million
Deborah James’ Just Giving page is still going strong – with donations currently standing at just over £7.4million.
The Bowelbabe fund saw a surge in donations, pushing past £6.8m, in the hours after it was revealed the 40-year-old mother-of-two had passed away.
In her final weeks, the presenter of the BBC podcast You, Me And The Big C raised the huge amount of cash for research and was made a dame for her ‘tireless’ work improving awareness of the disease.
Dame Deborah became a patron for Bowel Cancer UK following her diagnosis and worked to raise money and awareness of the charity.
All donations will be used to fund causes that were close to Deborah’s heart including funding clinical trials and raising awareness of bowel cancer with the help of Cancer Research UK.
Its chief executive Genevieve Edwards said her legacy would live on through her campaigning work and that she had a ‘special gift’ to connect with the public which showed with the sheer volume of donations from the public.
To donate click HERE. .
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Dame Deborah James funeral: ‘Bowelbabe’ carried in coffin by husband Sebastien Bowen and teenage son