Mourners who attended the funeral of a man in Ireland were left in shock when they heard his voice from beyond the grave.
“Let me out, it’s f***ing dark in here” cried Shay Bradley from his coffin as it was being lowered into the ground in Kilmanagh, Kilkenny, on 12 October.
Mourners laugh as Shay Bradley’s voice can be heard from beyond the grave
In the pre-recorded message, the voice continued: “Where the f*** am I? Is that a priest I can hear? This is Shay, I’m in the box.”
He then sang: “Hello again hello, hello I just called to say goodbye.”
Ensuring he got the last laugh at his own send-off, the 62-year-old Irish Defence Force veteran had his family and friends in fits of giggles rather than tears.
Mr Bradley’s daughter, Andrea Bradley, said he had been sick for three years before he died on 8 October, and had planned his prank over the last year.
Shay Bradley died on 8 October after a long illness. Pic: Facebook
She told Sky News: “He was always full of life and he was big stature but even bigger in personality.
“My dad and my brother Jonathan came up with this over a year ago and only a select few knew about it, his kids and grandkids.”
Ms Bradley added that some of the mourners at his funeral were taken by surprise when they heard his voice from beyond the grave, which was put out via a speaker from the ground.
She added: “One of his sister’s got a big shock, but after a few seconds realised it must have been his last joke, it was his way to say goodbye.
“But also his way to say, ‘Enough sadness, it’s time to celebrate my life now.’ So we sent and done just that. We gave him an amazing send-off and the online reaction has been incredible.”
Mr Bradley got the last laugh at his funeral with a pre-recorded message
The video of the funeral service has since gone viral, and was was shared by the Irish Defence Forces Veterans’ News who wrote on Facebook: “It is with great sadness that I was informed of the passing of our Military Brother and Veteran Colleague Shay Bradley.
“On behalf of the members of the IDFVA I extend our sincerest condolences and prayers to Anne and family at this sad time. May Shay Rest in Peace.”
In a separate post, they added: “Was asked a question the other day, it was what’s the difference between military humour and civilian humour, it’s simple, it’s black. This video should say it all. This is the funeral of Shay Bradley on the 12 of October 2019 and it says it all…”
