Linda Nolan funeral: Star is laid to rest in pink glittery coffin – as sister Coleen fights back tears at emotional farewell attended by celebrities including Shane Richie

Linda Nolan was laid to rest in a glittery pink coffin as her loved ones gathered to say goodbye at her funeral at St. Paul’s Church in Blackpool on Saturday.

The singer tragically passed away on January 15 2025 aged 65 following a 20-year breast cancer battle and suffering from double pneumonia. 

And Linda’s sister Coleen looked emotional as she arrived to say goodbye to her beloved sibling at her ‘spiritual’ home of Blackpool at the weekend. 

The singer, 59, dressed in a furry black coat, was seen wiping away tears as she joined her loved ones to say goodbye to the entertainer. 

Coleen was joined by fellow Nolan sisters Maureen, Anne and Denise, who were greeted and clapped by friends and family who lined the walkway as they made their way into the church.

As they waited in the church their sister was carried in seven pall bearers comprised of male members of the Nolan’s friends and family.

Linda passed away on 15th January, aged 65 at Blackpool Victoria Hospital. She died from double pneumonia, where she entered into end-of-life care and then into a coma. She was living with secondary breast cancer, which had spread to her hip, liver and brain, but cancer was not the cause of death. 

Denise, who Linda lived with towards the end of her life in Blackpool and who took her to the hospital before her death, lead the eulogy.

In it she revealed the family’s nickname of ‘Auntie Ginda’ for the late singer, ‘because she liked a gin or two’.

She said: ‘She was the life and soul of the party. Her sense of humour was unlike any other and no party will ever be the same.

‘Linda would always say, ‘I’m living with cancer not dying of cancer’. She didn’t let it rule her life no matter how hard it tried.

‘The hair loss was the worst thing for her when she got it again. And then during Covid she spent a week in hospital alone with no visitors were allowed.

‘All of these things would have destroyed a lesser person but Linda wouldn’t allow it.’

Denise’s final words were said: ‘It’s time to rest now Linda, the battle is over you are free.’

The eulogy was then followed by a song by Linda, When It’s Over.

Linda’s former brother-in-law Shane Richie cut a sombre figure as he arrived ahead of his ex-wife.

Shane, 60, who was married to Linda’s sister Coleen between 1990-1999, was one of the first to arrive to pay his respects, as he hid his eyes behind brown tinted shades. 

Grammy nominated singer, Lisa Matthew, who was part of the noughties band, Milkshake, was also one of the first star studded guests to arrive. 

Meanwhile, the last surviving Chuckle brother, Paul Harlan, 77, arrived at Linda Nolan’s funeral to pay his respects and said ‘the world will be a darker place without Linda, we used to enjoy our life together’.   

‘She was just a wonderful person. we always got on well,’ he said.

‘I last saw her in March, April time last year. Came over to see her in Stanley Park [in Blackpool] for lunch, our favourite place, a café in the park.’

Paul went on: ‘She was just a fun, bubbly person. The world is a darker place without her.’

The TV star, one half of the famous double act The Chuckle Brothers, smiled as he recalled working on a show with her in the 1980s. 

‘We had adjoining dressing rooms, Barry [Paul’s late brother] and I and Linda and Brian [Hudson, her late husband],’ he said.

‘We had the door open all the time with a table in between with drinks on it. We just used to enjoy our life. I still do… and shame that Linda can’t anymore.’

Paul – whose brother Brian died in 2018 – also praised the ‘absolutely massive turn out’ for Linda’s funeral, noting that more people would be arriving to pay their respects.  

Comic and actor, Tommy Canon, 86, known as the straight man from the duo Canon and Ball arrived, with the funeral coming five after his comedy partner Bobby Ball died in 2020 

Coronation Street star, Jodie Prenger, 45, was half an hour early to pay her respects to her friend who she met on the stage show, Oliver.

Other stars in attendance included Charlotte Dawson and mother Tracey, Hayley Tammadon and Lee Brennan. 

Charlotte, who is the daughter of the late, Les Dawson noted that she was going ‘full glam’ in honour of her friend.

Speaking to MailOnline and other press at her funeral, Charlotte said: ‘I’m in full glam for you, Linda. She loved me in full glam. I don’t think I will look like this after the service.  

‘The sun is shining for her and she was such an amazing person. She lit up every room she walked in to. 

‘Everyone loves Linda, everyone. She was such a fun, bubbly, fabulous person and made me laugh. 

‘We had the best memories ever. We really did. Very special memories. Many a time drunk, when I wasn’t pregnant, I used to do her makeup as well. I would put her in full glam. 

‘We had so many different memories traveling the country having a laugh, getting into mischief  – that was our favourite thing to do.’

Loose Women star, Coleen Nolan’s son Shane Richie, 35, was manning the door for his aunt while Linda’s older sister Denise, 72, read the eulogy.   

The surviving sisters of the Irish eighties pop group – Maureen, 71, Anne, 74, Denise, 72, and Coleen, 59, – have raised £2,670 for Trinity Hospice.

Linda was laid to rest in her ‘spiritual home’ of Blackpool, where the Nolans found fame after moving to the town in 1972, and where they lived for much of their lives, once even recording a single called Blackpool about the football club.

The funeral service, which began at 10.30am, was held in the same church on Honister Avenue where Linda married her beloved husband Brian Hudson in 1981.

The church is also where she held Brian’s funeral, after she lost him to skin cancer in 2007 when he was 60 years old.

A private service followed at a crematorium nearby, with Linda laid to rest with Brian’s ashes. 

Her sister Coleen previously explained how they had decided on Linda’s final resting place, telling The Mirror: ‘My first thought after she died was to put Brian’s ashes with Linda’s. 

‘So that’s what we’re doing. In life they were never apart, so I’m glad they’ll be together again.’  

In the wake of her death, Linda’s sisters Anne, 74, Denise, 72, Maureen, 69, and Coleen, 59, extended an invitation to her fans to say their goodbyes and celebrate ‘her remarkable life’. 

Fans gathered outside St Paul’s in designated areas, joining in with the family’s final farewell. 

An official invitation shared on social media last week read: ‘The Nolan family invites everyone to join them in celebrating the extraordinary life of Linda Nolan.

‘Linda was a beacon of light, strength and unwavering love who inspired everyone she met, in addition to millions around the world.

‘Her absence leaves an ache in our hearts but her legacy will live on through the joy, hope and kindness she shared so freely. 

‘Everyone who knew Linda or whose lives she touched, is welcome to come and pay their respects as we remember her remarkable life. 

‘Fans and public are welcome to gather outside the church for the funeral – and in true Linda spirit, the more the merrier!’

It continued: ‘St. Paul’s Church holds a deeply special place in Linda’s heart. It is where she married the love of her life, Brian Hudson, with whom she shared 26 wonderful years of marriage. Brian was Linda’s rock, her soulmate, and the love of her life, just as she was his.

‘When Brian tragically passed away in 2007, Linda found the strength to carry on, but her love for him never wavered. St. Paul’s was also where Linda said her final goodbye to Brian, holding his funeral in the same church where they had exchanged their vows. 

‘Now, Linda will return to this sacred place to be reunited with Brian once more, finally at peace and back in his loving embrace.

‘Following the service, there will be a private cremation at a nearby crematorium, attended by close family and friends only.’

The family then expressed their wishes that any donations be made to a charity.

They penned: ‘In honour of Linda’s compassionate and giving spirit, the family wishes to raise as much money as possible for Trinity Hospice, a charity that held a special place in Linda’s heart. 

‘Donations can be sent through her memorial page, via the link in our bio. Messages of condolence, cherished memories and photos can also be shared on the page, creating a lasting tribute to Linda’s beautiful life.

‘Linda was more than a beloved sister, friend, and entertainer – she was a symbol of hope, humour and resilience.’

Linda was first diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in 2005 before getting the all-clear in 2006 – but in 2017 she was diagnosed with a form of incurable secondary cancer in her hip, which spread to her liver in 2020.

Three years later she shared the news that the cancer had spread to her brain, with two tumours discovered on the left side of her brain which left her struggling with her speech and balance.

And she issued an update last August that the tumours – which were thought to be stable – had grown.

Weeks before her death, the former Nolans star wrote in the Mirror that she was beginning to feel better after contracting double pneumonia, but two days later she was rushed to hospital with breathing problems. 

But despite being placed on oxygen and being urged to rest, Linda, known for her playful and spirited personality, couldn’t resist making those around her smile. 

Rather than following medical advice to take it easy, she chose to spend her final hours spreading happiness and making people laugh.

Days after her death, her sister Denise, 72, reflected on her sister’s unwavering zest for life, describing how Linda embraced every moment and left behind memories of love, humor, and light. 

Recounting the last few hours in the life of her ‘beautiful, brave, hard-working and talented sister’, Denise told the Mirror: ‘She’d been laughing and joking, although the medical team had told her she had to stay quiet to let her treatment do its job. Everyone was being quietly optimistic as she’d seemed so cheerful. 

‘Then at 3.30am on Tuesday, we got the dreaded call, ‘Get to the hospital asap’.’

Linda had heartbreakingly planned her own funeral in the years before her death, right down to her glitter pink coffin. 

Writing in her autobiography From The Heart in 2018, she explained: ‘I want to get all my affairs ‘in order’, as they say. I’ve caused my family enough worry over the years and so I want everything I can decided now so they don’t have to if I become very poorly.’

She added: ‘I’ve chosen the songs for my funeral… I would like There You’ll Be from Pearl Harbor sung by Faith Hill.

‘The words couldn’t be more fitting for the moment when I’ll finally be going to meet Brian again.’ 

The singer’s husband, Brian Hudson, died of liver failure in 2007 after being diagnosed with skin cancer.

Linda wrote: ‘It’s the song we played at his funeral. The song we’d jokingly rowed about years earlier as to which of us would have it at our funeral. A row in the days when we thought dying was a million miles away. Goodness, how things have changed.’

She also previously revealed her coffin choice, telling the Mirror: ‘Brian organised his funeral and it was amazing. 

‘Bernie arranged hers. It’s easier for people left behind. I’ve gone into it a little bit. A Neil Sedaka song, Our Last Song Together. And I know the funeral people I’m going to use.

‘Brian’s coffin was like a flight case, with ‘This way up’, ‘Fragile’ on it.

‘Our auntie had a beautiful coffin with pictures of us around it.

‘Then Maureen said, ‘Look at this coffin, it was made for you, it’s pink glitter’.’

Coleen recently confirmed the heartfelt plans for her sister’s funeral and revealed Linda had planned some details before her death, creating a list of requests for her sisters. 

The Loose Women star told how Linda wanted them to ‘wear mantillas’ and black outfits, while her coffin was to have a showbiz twist.

Coleen laughed: ‘I remember saying, ‘You are joking, Linda! If I see all my sisters in mantillas, I’m going to laugh the whole way through the funeral! We’ve decided not to do that, but we are wearing black.

‘Her coffin is pure showbiz – bright pink and sparkly, just as she wanted. The one thing my sister loved was bling so it feels right that she has a glittery pink coffin.’ 

Prior to her death, Linda shared her fears about dying of breast cancer like her sister Bernie as she battled a ‘bad case of flu’ in the weeks before she died at the age of 65.

In a newspaper column published shortly before her passing, Linda described how a debilitating bout of sickness for 11 days over Christmas made the festive period ‘a complete wipe out’.

In what would be her final column for the Mirror, she wrote: ‘The doctors say it’s been a bad case of flu. I’d walk a few steps and struggle to catch my breath.

‘My legs were even more wobbly than usual and, although I try not to, I thought of how Bernie was at the end. You think, ‘Oh my God, is this it?’

‘It was only on Monday I felt well enough to venture out. It feels like a whole new world out there. There’s nothing like the sensation of starting to feel better after an illness.

 ‘You’ve forgotten what it feels like to feel normal (well, I say normal?).’

In an especially poignant final line, she added: ‘I’m no fan of resolutions but here’s one: It’ll take more than flu to finish me off.’

In the statement announcing her death, her agent Dermot McNamara wrote: ‘It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Linda Nolan, the celebrated Irish pop legend, television personality, Guinness World Record holding West End star, Sunday Times bestselling author and Daily Mirror columnist.

‘As a member of The Nolans, one of the most successful girl groups of all time, Linda achieved global success; becoming the first Irish act to sell over a million records worldwide; touring the world and selling over 30 million records, with hits such as Gotta Pull Myself Together, Attention to Me and the iconic disco classic I’m In The Mood for Dancing.’