Terry Wogan funeral to be private ceremony

‘Wembley wouldn’t be big enough ... there will probably be just family and friends,’ Fr D’Arcy says

Terry Wogan’s funeral will take place next week in a private ceremony for his family, the BBC has confirmed. The Limerick-born broadcaster died on Sunday aged 77 after a short battle with cancer.

“Sir Terry Wogan’s funeral will take place next week. It will be a private service, for the family. No further details will be released, and we ask that the family’s wish for privacy is respected at this time,” the BBC said in a statement.

The statement gave no details of where the funeral would take place but Fr Brian D’Arcy, a friend of Sir Terry and his family who was with him shortly before he died, suggested it would be held in the UK.

“How can you have a public funeral for Terry Wogan? Where would you put it? Wembley wouldn’t be big enough for it, so there will probably be just family and friends at a private funeral. I suspect it will be probably early next week. It is in the UK. The BBC usually holds a quite public memorial service later on,” Fr D’Arcy said.

Denis Staunton

Denis Staunton

Denis Staunton is China Correspondent of The Irish Times