Ricky Tomlinson on Gateway 97.8

Becoming a tree, being fired in a firework and turned into a piece of jewellery are just some of the ways we are making our final farewell ‘our own’ according to new insight from data gathered over half a million funerals over the last 5 years.

The data from co-op revealed the drastic ways in which our funeral choices continue to evolve. In 2019, just one in ten would opt for a religious ceremony. Traditionally, a funeral was a service held in a formal or religious setting where mourners dressed in dark clothing and paid their respects. Alongside the change in setting, clothing is changing too. In the last 12 months alone, nine out of ten of funeral directors and arrangers (87%) have conducted funerals where mourners wore bright colours and over four-fifths (85%) have arranged funerals where guests wore the deceased’s favourite hue.

On top of this, a sixth (15%) have been asked to arrange a super-hero themed funeral! Knowing who to invite to special events can be tricky… but apparently not when it comes to our furry friends. 57% of funeral directors and arrangers have been asked for pets to be present and pay their respects.

Aston spoke to Ricky Tomlinson, legendary TV actor and Reagan Drew, co-op funeral director to discuss the research and also Ricky discussed whether he’d wanted to be on a TV or under a tree!