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Powerful Sir Bobby Charlton farewell felt like a funeral befitting royalty
As a pale autumn light pierced the high nave windows, glinting off the organ pipes, all you could hear was the howl of the wind outside. Such is the reverie that descends on funerals, where the formalities of death bring a heightened consciousness that this, for all of us, is how it ends. For Sir Bobby Charlton, the backdrop to his final act was almost Lowry-esque, with 1,000 monochrome mourners picked out against a desolate sky. And yet inside Manchester Cathedral, where an almanac of football royalty gathered in tribute to England’s greatest ever player, the overwhelming sensation was one of warmth.
Charlton understood in life how even the saddest occasions would sometimes produce a sense of grace. He felt it at a ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of the Munich disaster, where a few flakes started falling at Old Trafford, in a spiritual echo of the snowbound runway where eight of his team-mates had perished. “I saw a weight lift that day,” said John Shiels, head of the Manchester United Foundation. “It was as if we were being communicated to, in the stadium that Sir Bobby named the ‘Theatre of Dreams.’”
To see Charlton’s coffin placed upon the catafalque was to be reminded of the 65 years he enjoyed beyond United’s calamity in that Bavarian storm. The funeral of Duncan Edwards, on board the same aircraft, had taken place on February 27, 1958: a different age, with the procession captured only in mute black-and-white footage. Charlton wrestled for the rest of his days with the conundrum of why he had survived and the 21-year-old Edwards, to whom he always deemed himself inferior, had not. But the eulogies here painted a picture of a man who turned tragedy into an enduring resolve never to waste a moment.
David Gill, the former United chief executive so often at Charlton’s side in taking the club brand global, briefly lost composure when he mentioned Munich. “Reflecting now, I would have liked to talk to him more about Munich,” he said, his voice quavering. “But Bobby dealt with it in his own way: private, stoic, dignified.” Dignity and reserve are qualities universally ascribed to Charlton. There were times, though, where he sought to share the pain he carried with him. Anyone who listened to him describe that terrible grind of metal on metal as the plane lost control, or how he threw his overcoat across a stricken Matt Busby to shield him from the cold, would never forget the images he conjured.
The pictures for the funeral programme were carefully chosen: the cover depicted an elder Charlton in his black-tie best, while the back showed a version from 1959, crouching down on the turf with a battered brown leather ball. Inside was a photograph from the family album of Bobby with his wife Norma and their two daughters, Suzanne and Andrea. In all these snapshots of a sprawling life he is wearing his signature half-smile, conveying both wisdom and wistfulness.
His brother Jack would say that the day flight 609 crashed was the day Bobby “stopped smiling”. You could hardly blame him if he thought his innocence had been lost, having suffered such desolation so young. But a surface of occasional sternness belied his qualities of loyalty, humility and kindness. Few could better attest to these virtues than Sir Alex Ferguson, whom Charlton was instrumental in bringing to United from Aberdeen in 1986, standing by his appointment even when the Scot struggled in those early years to craft his masterpiece.
“He was a fantastic man,” Ferguson said. “From the day I came he supported me 100 per cent, all the way. He was totally behind me and everything we tried to do with youth. I’m only at Manchester United because of Bobby Charlton.”
It is a sombre fact that at Ferguson’s age, 81, there are more yesterdays than tomorrows. But his emotive tribute to Charlton spoke of a figure who has never forgotten the people who helped him. On a day when the Glazers, United’s owners, stayed away for fear of creating a distraction, Ferguson’s presence in the cathedral an hour before the service was reassuringly familiar. Always the first to pay his respects, he has depicted Charlton as somebody who held the very fabric of United together, who was not so much an ambassador as a one-man museum.
A one-hour funeral could never hope to be a definitive reflection of Charlton’s 86 years. But its scripting delicately evoked what he had meant to his club, to his city, to his country. Bookended by Abide with Me and Jerusalem, it captured his majesty as a player in song, with one hymn redolent of the FA Cup final he won in 1963 and the other expressing the patriotic pride he unleashed as one of England’s world champions three years later.
In one sense, he belonged to the world, with Gary Lineker reflecting how the words “Bobby Charlton” were known even to those who never spoke a word of English. But behind the public property, the icon who could not escape any airport baggage carousel without signing autographs for half an hour, was an intensely private person who relished life away from the flashbulbs.
One of the most poignant segments came when his grandson, William Balderston, offered an insight into his steadfastness behind the scenes: “Not even once was there a subtle brag about his achievements. He had a standard of modesty that everybody in the family strives to emulate. I’ve been inspired not so much by his greatness as by his goodness. Thank you for lifting us all up, to encourage us to follow our dreams, no matter how lofty they are. We are all so extraordinarily lucky to have had you.”
There were 1,000 inside the cathedral for this grandest of send-offs, but in keeping with the wishes of Lady Norma, his widow, no cameras were permitted. Even with the Prince of Wales present, as president of the Football Association, she wanted some of the personal touches to be spared a worldwide broadcast. Under such conditions, Gill, in particular, could indulge in the odd ribaldry, not least the story of how he once guided Charlton in Amsterdam to a hostelry of ill repute.
“We were playing Ajax and thought we would have a tour of the city, so we asked the driver to show us the sights,” he recalled. “And yes, the tour did include the red-light district, before ending up at a ‘nice’ cafe for coffee. Bobby was all for going inside until one of us noticed the smell wafting out. The driver had misinterpreted the word ‘nice’ and taken us to a cafe also serving cannabis. We decided this was one media story – ‘Knight of the realm in drug den’ – best avoided. We made our excuses and left.”
On this windswept November afternoon, hundreds thought nothing of waiting by the cathedral gates for hours, just to catch a glimpse of a funeral on a scale more associated with royalty. It was a similar scene at Old Trafford, where a red United shirt was thrown on to the bonnet of the hearse as it passed. Opposite the East Stand, in the shadow of the Holy Trinity statue of Charlton, George Best and Denis Law, representatives of United’s Under-18 and Under-21 teams formed a guard of honour.
Festooned across the fences were photos of that unforgettable European Cup triumph in 1968. “Sir Bobby, the legacy you left with us: history, dignity and integrity,” one banner declared. “Our promise to you: We will protect that legacy and keep the red flag flying high.” Football can be a grimly tribal enterprise, but the purity of Charlton’s love for the game assured him of an admiration far beyond the red half of Manchester.
Shiels, giving his address at the lectern, held up a ball to emphasise this point. “This ball was front and centre in his entire life,” he said. “He would say it was the best toy ever invented. It was with children that I found Bobby most at ease. He could just be himself. No judgments, and nothing to live up to.”
Not that it was in Charlton’s nature to trumpet his credentials. The closest he ever came to hauteur was in saying that he and Ferguson shared 107 international caps, knowing full well that he had 106 of them. It fell to Gill, in his absence, to articulate the full measure of his stature, as a “revered son of the North-East, an icon of Manchester for all he did for United, a national treasure as the epitome of the very best of English sport.”
With Charlton’s passing, an emblem of England has gone, a sporting totem who was the most visible link to a past both bleak and glorious, who wore his accomplishments not with hubris but humility. He was the plane crash survivor who conquered every frontier in football. What an epitaph to leave, and what a priceless gift to bequeath.
Sir Bobby Charlton’s funeral: As it happened
04:39 PM GMT
Sir Bobby's funeral
03:55 PM GMT
The last of the four
The youngest of the four Charlton brothers and the only surviving son of Cissie and Bob Charlton, after the deaths of his brothers Bobby and Gordon this year, was at the service:
03:38 PM GMT
Gary Lineker stops for a word with Sky
“A lovely send off for the great man,” Lineker says. “These things are always emotive. People came from all over the world to pay their respects and I’m privileged to be here. Off the pitch he was so generous and kind. You can perhaps sum him up that you could go anywhere in the world and they would know two words [of English], ‘Bobby Charlton’. It not only speaks volumes for the fame but for the respect in which he was held throughout the world.
03:26 PM GMT
Can we have a quick word, Sir Alex?
“Aye, velocity,” says Sir Alex, nicking Gordon Strachan’s famous line and pretending to dart off, before smiling and relenting.
“It was very sombre. A wonderful tribute from his grandson. It’s not easy getting up to speak. The speakers did a wonderful job. He was a fantastic man. I am at United because of Bobby Charlton. From the day I came he supported me 100 per cent, all the way in what I wanted to do in terms of youth. As I say, I’m only at Manchester United because of Bobby Charlton.”
03:14 PM GMT
Sir Bobby Charlton's funeral service has finished
And guests are beginning to depart. Daley Thompson, characteristically, in sportswear.
The cortege now returns to Old Trafford for a private reception.
03:07 PM GMT
Manchester United players, past and present, pay their respects
02:53 PM GMT
Manchester United's tribute to Sir Bobby
Looking back at the life of an inspirational man ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Geufc9M9Hh
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) November 13, 2023
02:46 PM GMT
Charlton family eulogy
William Balderston, Sir Bobby’s grandson, delivers a tribute on behalf of the Charlton family.
Not even once was there even a subtle brag about his achievements. He had a standard of modesty that everybody in the family strives to emulate. As his grandson, I’ve been inspired not so much by his greatness as by his goodness. He was a deeply private and humble man. But he would also happily step away from privacy to give others a wonderful experience.
When my sister and I had been given sleighs one Christmas, he brushed snow off us to have a go himself, shooting down the hill at speeds I still can’t quite believe. He was a fantastic storyteller. He would entertain us for whole afternoons and never look on it as a chore. Both he and my grandmother have shown us what devotion truly means.
Thank your for the stories, the laughter. And thank you for lifting us all up, to encourage us to follow our dreams, no matter how lofty they are. We are all so extraordinarily lucky to have had you.
02:39 PM GMT
Rolling back the years, in song
Tony Bannister, 83, lifelong #ManchesterUnited fan paying tribute to Sir Bobby Charlton outside Old Trafford pic.twitter.com/SJCDgQncel
— Nick Ellerby (@NickEllerby) November 13, 2023
02:34 PM GMT
Head of the Manchester United Foundation pays tribute
John Shiels, chief executive of the Manchester United Foundation, for whom Sir Bobby performed tireless work, holds up a ball as he begins his address at the lectern. ‘This, Bobby would always say, was the greatest toy ever invented.’
‘The support Bobby and his wife Norma gave us was limitless. He made it a royal visit. He also retained a phenomenal winning mentality. I recall being on the fringe of beating a sporting legend in a charity tennis match in Ireland, 5-1 ahead. But Bobby became a man possessed, coming back to win 7-5.
‘His was the head that bore the crown. It was only at the 60th anniversary of Munich, at Old Trafford, that I saw a weight start to lift. And in the middle of the ceremony, just as on that fateful day, it started to snow. It was as if we were all being communicated to, there at the stadium he called the Theatre of Dreams.’
02:31 PM GMT
Old Trafford's picture gallery
An array of iconic images of Charlton over the decades had been erected on boards across the fences opposite the east stand. One pictured him carefully examining the European Cup won in 1968, others lifting the trophy on that historic night at Wembley in 1968. Others showed Charlton celebrating with Sir Matt Busby and Jimmy Murphy and in action for United and there was also a picture of Charlton lifting the World Cup above his head from 1966.
02:27 PM GMT
David Gill's eulogy
David Gill, former chief executive of Manchester United, delivers a eulogy on behalf of the club.
Every person around the world knew who you were talking about, no surname needed. He was universally admired. His records were not broken until relatively recently. He was only booked twice and never sent off – not that he had to deal with VAR, mind.
He was a steadfast supporter of Sir Alex. And for me, he was an enduring confidant. He was always there to chat things through, and to reassure that it would all come good in the end. And boy, with Alex in charge, it certainly did.
I remember Bobby playing on the pitch in 1998, in an Old Trafford staff match. His legs were like tree trunks even then, in his 60s. His eyes always lit up when he had a ball at his feet. I remember playing Ajax, we had a tour of Amsterdam. But the tour happened to take in a cannabis cafe. We saw the sign and decided that this one story, ‘Knight of the realm in drug den’, that needed to stay out of the press.
There was not an airport concourse in the world where he was not approached for autographs and selfies.
Bobby dealt with the Munich disaster in his own way. Private, stoic, dignified.
Gill is briefly overcome with emotion.
He had such a wonderful marriage to Norma for over 60 years. We all love you, Bobby. You will be sorely missed.’
02:24 PM GMT
Sir Bobby begins his final journey
02:20 PM GMT
The order of service
02:16 PM GMT
From Old Trafford
A red United shirt was thrown on to the bonnet of the hearse carrying Charlton’s coffin in a touching scene as thousands of fans clapped in solemn respect as the funeral cortege proceeded slowly across the stadium forecourt at Old Trafford.
Players from United’s Under-18 and Under-21 team formed a guard of honour in Charlton’s honour in the shadow of the Holy Trinity statue of Charlton, George Best and Denis Law that stands opposite Old Trafford’s east stand.
02:15 PM GMT
The guest list
Those attending:
Governing bodies
Prince William, President Designate, The FA , Aleksander Ceferin, President Uefa, Gareth Southgate, England manager, Debbie Hewitt, FA chair and Fifa vice-president, Alison Brittain, Premier League chair.
Manchester United
Sir Alex Ferguson, Richard Arnold, David Gill, Martin Edwards, Ed Woodward, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Jonny Evans, Tom Heaton, Alex Stepney, Paddy Crerand, John Aston Jnr, Brian Kidd, Sammy McIlroy, Alan Gowling, Lou Macari, Willie Morgan, Martin Buchan, Bryan Robson, Mark Hughes, Brian McClair, Steve Bruce, Mike Phelan, Gary Pallister, Ryan Giggs, Peter Schmeichel, Andrew Cole, Roy Keane, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes, Wes Brown, Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick, Darren Fletcher, Ashley Young.
Other notable guests
Mike Summerbee, Ian Callaghan, Alan Kennedy, Gary Lineker, Emilio Butragueno, Ferran Soriano, Mark Noble, Andy Burnham, Calum Best and Daley Thompson.
02:05 PM GMT
Six pall-bearers carry Sir Bobby's coffin into the cathdral
The casket was topped with white flowers, lilies and what looked like gardenias.
02:04 PM GMT
Scenes from Old Trafford and Manchester Cathedral
02:00 PM GMT
The Prince of Wales arrived a few moments earlier
01:56 PM GMT
Treble winners reassemble
01:52 PM GMT
An emissary from the neighbours
Ferran Soriano, Manchester City’s chief executive, has arrived in the cathedral to represent the blue half of the city.
01:51 PM GMT
First photos from Old Trafford
01:49 PM GMT
The Prince of Wales has arrived
Representing the Football Association as its president.
01:48 PM GMT
Paddy Crerand is interviewed briefly
“What a nice man he was,” says Pat Crerand. “People didn’t realise how humble and shy he was. He found fame very hard to handle. I used to see him twice a day because our daughters went to the same school. What a lovely guy. It was no pleasure to play against him [for Scotland], I couldn’t get near enough to kick him.”
01:45 PM GMT
Fast falls the eventide
I have just arrived in Manchester Cathedral for Sir Bobby Charlton’s funeral. The written press are sitting directly behind the former Manchester United managers, represented here so far by Sir Alex Ferguson and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer. The funeral programme has a picture of Sir Bobby in black tie on the front cover and a photograph of him in late 1950s United kit on the back. Abide with Me will be the opening hymn after the procession enters.
01:43 PM GMT
The bells peal at Manchester Cathedral
Roy Keane has just walked in with Nicky Butt while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer arrived with Michael Carrick:
01:39 PM GMT
El Buitre
Emiliano Butragueno is there to represent Real Madrid, such a fierce foe for Bobby Charlton and Manchester United in the mid to late sixties:
01:37 PM GMT
The crowd breaks out into sustained applause
The cortege passes the East Stand as it begins to turn towards the city centre.
01:34 PM GMT
The funeral procession approaches Old Trafford
The Mercedes hearse carrying the casket is preceded by a chief mourner walking slowly in front. A red United shirt is tossed on to the vehicle as it approaches the famous stadium facade.
01:31 PM GMT
The 'Trinity' statue at Old Trafford
Has a guard of honour of Manchester United’s scholars, trainees and young professionals, all in their club blazers.
01:26 PM GMT
Erik ten Hag will not be at the funeral
The club have announced: “Erik ten Hag has sent his regrets due to an unbreakable and long-standing personal commitment in the Netherlands.”
01:22 PM GMT
Gareth Southgate
Arrives at Manchester Cathedral, along with the England manager’s assistant, Steve Holland.
Other mourners include, from Liverpool, Alan Kennedy, plus United heroes Bryan Robson, Brian Kidd, Paul Scholes, below, Lou Macari, Brian McClair et al.
01:18 PM GMT
Fans gather at Old Trafford to pay their respects
01:15 PM GMT
Hero of 1968 arrives
Alex Stepney, the penalty-taking ’keeper and team-mate of Bobby Charlton from 1967-73 arrives with his family.
01:11 PM GMT
Today's ceremonies
The funeral cortege arrives at Old Trafford at 1.30pm, passing by the fans gathered there and the ‘Holy Trinity’ statue before proceeding to the service at Manchester Cathedral on Victoria Street for 2pm.
The funeral service will be attended by the good and the great of Manchester United past and present plus dignitaries from governing bodies and other clubs. Hymns include, naturally enough, Abide With Me and Jerusalem and Russell Watson, United fan and tenor, will sing How Great Thou Art.
01:04 PM GMT
Sir Alex Ferguson arrives at Manchester Cathedral
12:58 PM GMT
From the archive
David Miller, founding football correspondent of the Sunday Telegraph, wrote poignantly on Charlton’s retirement from Manchester United in April 1973 but also shows the kind of disgust that many of us feel for the trappings of the game today were already irksome 50 years ago. Anyway, treat yourselves:
With the passing from the game at the end of this season of Bobby Charlton, football loses so many things; above all, I suppose that particular dignity that he brought to his club, the country and the game. His name has been the brass-plate of enduring respectability on a Manchester front door of occasional ill repute.
It has been his unwavering sportsmanship, as much and more than his supreme natural gifts, which earned worldwide affection and admiration.
Charlton stands for so much that is missing from the game today – loyalty, modesty, integrity. The ordinary man, weary of all the tedious ballyhoo concerning false idols, the fake wars of fake words spun out to the clicking of the cash register, has seen in Bobby a genuine figurehead worthy of adulation.
The phenomenal shooting power, sensational in the early days, the body swerve, the passes which curled and dipped like swallows. the mute acceptance of physical abuse and the tolerance of colleagues less accomplished, all this has made Charlton the player. What we shall miss, however, is the style of the man, There is no sign of his being replaced.
12:23 PM GMT
Glazers absent from servive
The Glazer family will not be attending Sir Bobby Charlton’s funeral.
It is understood the unpopular Manchester United owners did not want their presence to be a distraction as the great and good of world football prepare to come together to say goodbye to one of the sport’s most iconic figures.
The Glazers are widely reviled by United fans, who staged their latest protest against the Americans’ 18-year ownership of the club before Saturday’s 1-0 win over Luton at Old Trafford.
Joel and Avram Glazer, the United co-chairman, are the most involved of the family in the club but neither will be at Manchester cathedral to pay their respects to Charlton, who passed away last month aged 86.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is hoping to complete the purchase of a 25 per cent shareholding in United later this week, almost a year since the Glazers first announced a “strategic review” of the club.
The Ineos founder is expected to pay up to £1.35billion for a quarter stake in the club and is offering a staggered investment of around £245million to use towards United’s neglected infrastructure needs.
Ratcliffe is expected to gain control of the sporting operation as part of the deal in a move that could lead to significant changes in personnel and structure.
12:19 PM GMT
Vale Sir Bobby
Good afternoon and welcome to our coverage of the funeral of Sir Bobby Charlton, England’s greatest footballer and very probably Manchester United’s too. I am one of the diminishing band of people under the age of 60 who had actually seen him play, sadly not in his prime, but 12 years after he originally retired at Old Trafford in a benefit match for the victims of the Bradford fire in July 1985 at Elland Road, along with most of his fellow World Cup winners in a three-quarter pace re-run of the 1966 final.
For my generation he was perfectly encapsulated by Brian Glover’s Mr Sugden in Barry Hines and Ken Loach’s 1969 film Kes. The PE teacher, explaining why he is wearing Manchester United’s No9 shirt instead of his usual No10 that morning, says: “It’s too cold to play as a striker today. I’m scheming this morning, all over the field, just like Charlton used to do. Anyway Denis Law’s in the wash this week.” Football has provided no more thrilling sight than Charlton running at full pelt with the ball under his immaculate control and his remaining golden strands of hair standing proud like ripe wheat.
Football was the greatest friend Bobby Charlton ever had and he loved it unequivocally. You could argue that the game reciprocated that love, giving him an opportunity to express himself in a way that his words could never convey, a fearless extrovert on the pitch, an introvert off it but with both sides of that personality driven by an emotional sincerity and conspicuous, compelling sense of duty that made him not so much the golden boy but the favourite son of the English game.
Golden boys come and go, as do tributes. Today his family and everyone who loves football is engaged in something far more important. They pay their respects to a great man.
