Fans have lined the streets to bid farewell to The Prodigy’s Keith Flint.
Music fans travelled from all around the world to descend upon the streets of Essex to say goodbye to the Prodigy star, who died on March 4 at his home earlier this year at the age of 49.
Festival flags were flying and music was played on loudspeakers outside St Mary’s Church in Bocking, Essex on Friday.
A post on the band’s official Twitter page called upon fans to mark the sad day along the procession route and to ‘raise the roof for Keef’ ahead of the private service at the church.
Many of them gathered on a green between the church and the village pub, with crowd control barriers and portable toilets in place, in preparation of the numbers expected.
Among them was 25-year-old Maria Lelicova, who flew in from Prague for the service and became tearful as she said ‘it’s the last time to have a connection, say goodbye’.
‘I never had so strong connection with other bands as with The Prodigy and it’s really something unique and it’s part of my life,’ she said.
‘I have three Prodigy tattoos, I love Keith Flint since my childhood because when I was really, really baby I was scared of him.
‘I always wanted to come here and visit him in his pub and stuff like this and you feel like you have a lot of time for it but now I’m here at the funeral.
‘It’s kind of sad.’
Araks Azarian, 36, whose flight from Australia arrived on the morning of the funeral, said she made the journey as ‘I’ve been doing it for years, to see the boys, and this is going to be my last chance to do it.’
Dennis Kuhne, 40, who flew in from Germany, said he wanted to ‘say goodbye to Keith’.
‘My first concert I think was in 1995 for the Jilted Generation tour. Since that time I follow the guys on almost every tour, festivals and everywhere they played in Germany,’ he said.
‘It’s a pleasure to be here.’
Carpenter Lewis Knowles, 31, travelled up from Calne in Wiltshire and said he recognised many faces from the front row of shows around the world.
‘They were a big part of growing up, listening to The Prodigy, enjoying it, travelling all round Europe and the world watching them, so it felt right to come here and just try to enjoy the day and see people you bump into at the gigs,’ he said.
Keith’s wife, Mayumi Kai, was among the first to arrive at the church, to say an emotional final goodbye to the musician.
The DJ was near tears as she made her way into the church, clasping her hands to her face as she was met by mourners outside.
A hearse carrying his coffin was later driven into the church, with ‘Keef’ spelled out in bright orange flowers, along with a yellow smiley-face.
Bandmates Maxim and Liam Howlett were among the pallbearers who carried his coffin in.
Essex Police warned of delays in the area as the force is expecting a ‘large number of well-wishers’ to attend the procession from Braintree to the church.
Since his death, there’s been an outpouring of tributes and appreciation for his impact on music.
An inquest heard earlier this month that Flint died by hanging.
His bandmate Liam Howlett said in an earlier Instagram post that Flint ‘took his own life’.
The singer rose to fame in the Brit Award-winning electronic band in the 1990s and was known for hits including Firestarter and Breathe.
They released their latest album No Tourists in November, their seventh consecutive number one record.
He was described in a statement by Howlett and fellow bandmate Maxim as ‘a true pioneer, innovator and legend’.
In an emotional statement, the remaining members described Flint as their ‘brother and best friend’, adding that ‘he will be forever missed.
Following his death, The Prodigy cancelled all shows.
