Hearse carrying coffin of Janey Godley showered with roses along Royal Mile
It was part of the late comedian’s ‘final tour’ ahead of her funeral on Saturday.
Janey Godley’s hearse was showered with roses as hundreds of fans gathered to watch it travel along Edinburgh’s Royal Mile.
The Scottish comedian’s coffin was driven down the famous street in Edinburgh, a city her daughter Ashley Storrie previously described as her “beloved festival home”, on Friday.
Godley died on November 2 aged 63 after receiving palliative treatment for terminal cancer.
The Royal Mile was packed with hundreds of fans on either side of the road, among them Storrie and other friends and relatives of Godley.
The hearse paused outside St Giles’ Cathedral, where a minute’s silence was held and the all-female 100-piece Sound House Choir sang a number of songs in tribute to the star.
To applause from the crowd, the choir sang Movin’ On Up by Primal Scream and One Day Like This by Elbow.
Fans held banners and flags emblazoned with phrases Godley was known for.
The hearse was accompanied by Godley’s close friend Shirley Doig.
After the songs and minute’s silence, supporters threw roses on to the roof of the hearse before it turned left on to Cockburn Street and on to Market Street ahead of her journey back to her home town of Glasgow.
Later on Friday, Godley will rest at St Mary’s Cathedral in Glasgow’s west end, where her funeral will take place on Saturday.
Storrie described the journey as her mother’s “final tour, in the two cities she loved with all her heart”.
Godley, who found viral fame with her dubbed parodies of then Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon’s coronavirus news briefings during the pandemic, revealed she had ovarian cancer in November 2021.
Her funeral on Saturday will be live-streamed on YouTube and those attending the service have been asked to wear bright colours if they wish, rather than traditional attire.
A private service at a crematorium will follow the funeral.
Ms Sturgeon posted on social media on Friday describing how by chance she found herself following Ms Godley’s hearse as it travelled on the M8 motorway back to Glasgow.
In a Stories post on her Instagram account, she wrote: “In one of those random coincidences the universe sometimes serves up, having been unable to make Janey’s Edinburgh send off today, I found myself right behind her hearse on the M8 back to Glasgow.
“I tailed it all the way, having a hilarious convo with her in my head. ‘You better no crash intae the back ae me’ I could hear her say! It was an honour to chum you home, pal. See you tomorrow” followed by a crying face emoji.
Godley was given the all-clear in 2022 but later that year she announced another scan had shown signs of the disease in her abdomen.
However, she said she would continue touring with her Not Dead Yet gigs.
In 2023 she won the inaugural Sir Billy Connolly Spirit of Glasgow Award at the Glasgow International Comedy Festival.
In September this year, she cancelled her autumn tour after her stage four ovarian cancer, which had been kept at bay through NHS treatment over the last few years, returned with what she said were added complications.
She died peacefully in the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice in Glasgow, surrounded by her loved ones, her management company said.
