Liam Gallagher and Wayne Rooney among stars at Ricky Hatton funeral
Liam Gallagher, Tyson Fury and Wayne Rooney were among those who attended the funeral of boxing champion Ricky Hatton.
While famous faces and family gathered at Manchester cathedral for the private memorial service, thousands of people lined the streets on Friday morning to pay their respects as the procession passed.
The procession was led by a Reliant Regal – the yellow three-wheeler made famous on the show Only Fools And Horses – which Hatton famously owned and used to drive.
Ricky Hatton funeral as it happened
As the funeral cortege passed the site of the pub Hatton’s parents, Ray and Carol Hatton, used to own and where he used to train in the basement – known back then as The New Inn – doves were released.
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Cheers as Ricky Hatton’s coffin enters cathedrall
Outside the church a brass band played Winter Wonderland, synonymous with the chant “There’s Only One Ricky Hatton”, which rang round the many stadiums Hatton fought in.
The service was played to the crowds outside the cathedral, during which Hatton’s three children Campbell, Fearne and Millie, each paid tribute to their dad.
The Reliant Regal owned by Hatton led the funeral procession. Pic: Action Images/Reuters
Pic: Reuters
Campbell, who has followed his father to become a boxer, said: “I can’t explain how much I’m going to miss you, Dad, and that we won’t be making any new memories – but the ones we did I will cherish forever.”
A statement from Hatton’s mother was read on her behalf, in which she described her son as “our little champion from the day he was born”.
Hatton’s parents Ray and Carol. Pic: PA
Wayne and Coleen Rooney. Pic: PA
Also pictured attending the service included Happy Mondays’s Shaun Ryder and Mark ‘Bez’ Berry, reality TV personality Calum Best, comedian Paddy McGuinness, former cricket star Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff and actor Dean Gaffney.
Former cricketer Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff. Pic: PA
Mark Berry ‘Bez’. Pic: PA
Boxer Frazer Clarke and former boxers Frank Bruno, Amir Khan, Scott Welch and Anthony Crolla were also at the funeral, as was pundit and former footballer Chris Kamara.
Eyewitness: A send-off for not just a great fighter, but a great Mancunian
As Ricky Hatton’s hearse moved through the streets of Manchester, some of the greatest names in British boxing began to climb the steps of the cathedral.
From Tyson Fury to Frank Bruno, Amir Khan to Tony Bellew, a collection of champions arrived to pay their respects.
In a testament to how Hatton’s legacy went beyond boxing, Liam Gallagher of Oasis was also there, as well as Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester.
But this wasn’t just a service in tribute to “Ricky the hitman”, who fought under the brightest lights.
This was a tribute to Richard Hatton, the people’s champion, who meant so much to this city, and died at 46.
As the service was played over a sound system, many of the people gathered wiped their eyes and bowed their heads as they heard tributes from Hatton’s loved ones.
Many of the people outside were wearing the sky blue of Manchester City, mourning one of their own.
Some had met him. Like the man whose son was a boxer and benefited from Hatton’s advice, or the two women who would grab a pint and a picture with him at City games.
For one of them, the night he won the world title in Manchester Arena remains a moment, she will never forget.
When the coffin was loaded back into the hearse for a final journey through Manchester to the Etihad, the crowd parted and applauded, before one last rendition of walking in a Hatton wonderland played by a band.
This was a send-off for not just a great fighter, but a great Mancunian, who brought so many people here on his journey to becoming a legend.
Following the service, the funeral procession made its way to the Etihad Stadium, the home of Hatton’s beloved Manchester City football club.
It was met by crowds applauding and singing.
Nigel Benn. Pic: PA
Tyson Fury. Pic: PA
Former boxer Amir Khan. Pic: PA
‘I was in awe of him’
Tributes poured in across the world of sport and beyond after Hatton’s death aged 46 at his home in Hyde, Greater Manchester, on 14 September.
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Tony Bellew: Ricky Hatton ‘was the standard’
The former world champion – nicknamed “The Hitman” – had only announced in July that he planned to come out of retirement in December for his first professional fight in 13 years.
Speaking to Sky News outside the church, former boxer Tony Bellew said he “was in awe” of Hatton when he first watched him training.
The funeral procession at the Etihad Stadium. Pic: PA
“I’ve watched thousands of fighters train over the years, hundreds of thousands. And after watching him… I was in awe of him. He was the standard – everything he did,” he said.
“There are thousands that have turned out today, not hundreds. That speaks volumes.”
Paedophile Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins has died after being attacked in prison.
Watkins, 48, was serving a 29-year jail term for multiple sexual offences, including serious crimes against young children and babies at HMP Wakefield, in West Yorkshire.
He was attacked with a knife by another inmate on Saturday morning, sources have confirmed.
West Yorkshire Police said two men, aged 25 and 43, have been arrested on suspicion of murder.
A police van outside Wakefield prison. Pic: YappApp
Watkins was pronounced dead at the scene after prison staff reported the assault to police.
The prison went into lockdown in the immediate aftermath of the incident, sources added.
A Prison Service spokesperson said they could not comment while the police investigate.
Watkins was previously stabbed in an incident at the same prison in 2023, suffering non life-threatening injuries after he was reportedly taken hostage by three other inmates before being freed by prison officers six hours later.
He was sentenced in December 2013 to 29 years in prison, with a further six years on licence, after admitting 13 sex offences, including the attempted rape of a fan’s baby.
Watkins performing in 2004. Pic: PA
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He also encouraged a second fan to abuse her child during a webcam chat and secretly stashed child sexual abuse videos, some of which he had made himself.
At the time, police described him as a “committed, organised paedophile”.
Having found fame in Welsh rock band Lostprophets, Watkins was arrested after his Pontypridd home was searched on orders of a drug warrant in September 2012.
A large number of computers, mobile phones and storage devices were seized during the search.
When sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court, the singer was told he was being given an extended sentence – and a judge said his crimes “plumbed new depths of depravity”.
After being caught with a mobile phone behind bars in 2019, he told a court that he was locked up with “murderers, mass murderers, rapists, paedophiles, serial killers – the worst of the worst”.
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