‘We love you Liam’ – home city remembers a year on
Rachael Lewisin Wolverhampton and
Andrew DawkinsWest Midlands
BBC
Tributes were left on railings at West Park in Wolverhampton on Thursday
Fans have been paying tribute to the singer Liam Payne in his home city of Wolverhampton a year after his death.
“We love you, Liam”, “I hope you are in a better place” and “You will always be remembered” were among the messages left in bouquets, cards and posters around the bandstand in West Park in the city.
The One Direction star died aged 31, after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires in Argentina.
The death of Payne, who was born in Bushbury in the city, sparked vigils across the world.
Fan Sarah McRobb says the singer was kind and also “hilarious”
Sarah McRobb, from Australia, who lives in Manchester, was among the fans who gathered at the bandstand.
The 30-year-old said she added some of her favourite quotes to her written tribute, which included “just random things from all different videos and just the funny moments that kind of showed the kind of person he was”.
“I just really want people to come and see this and just remember,” she added.
“Coming here, it feels like [the] closest place to be connected to Liam in a way, and everybody kind of comes here.
“For his birthday this whole thing was transformed all the way round, and we’re expecting more tributes to come in.”
Ms McRobb said the singer had been kind and was a “great role model”.
“I think the world would just be a lot better place if he was still in it.”
Getty Images
Payne died in Argentina, aged 31, after falling from a hotel balcony
John Carpenter, who was at secondary school with Payne, told how he watched his friend’s rise to fame, describing it as “incredible”.
He said after Payne went on the ITV show X Factor and became part of One Direction that, “We had a good feeling about it that he was going to go all the way.”
Mr Carpenter said he would remember his friend as “a really loyal friend who would always encourage and always build you up – and he would want you to be the best person that you could be”.
He said he planned to remember his friend on the anniversary by doing something they had both enjoyed, adding: “Tonight, I might actually go on a run – that’s what myself and Liam used to do a lot.”
John Carpenter was at secondary school with the star
A court in Argentina dropped charges in February of criminal negligence against three out of five people who had been charged in connection with the singer’s death.
Fans gathered by the bandstand in West Park on the anniversary of Liam Payne’s death on Thursday
Fans remember the One Direction star
