Inside service for Bill Kenwright as stars of theatre and football pay tribute

Greats of the worlds of theatre and football gathered to pay tribute to Bill Kenwright in a moving service at the Anglican Cathedral

'He defined the word love' - Inside moving service for Bill Kenwright as stars of theatre and football pay tribute

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Major figures from football and the arts celebrated the life of a man hailed as a giant of both worlds.

Bill Kenwright was remembered as a loyal, generous and passionate figure by an A-List cast as hundreds filled the Anglican Cathedral to reflect upon his impact.

The 75 minute service featured heartfelt tributes to a figure who rose from the streets of Liverpool to become a renowned theatre impresario with influence on the West End and Broadway - as well as chairman of his beloved Everton Football Club.

Both of those passions were represented during a moving event that included performances by Marti Pellow and Mel C and touching words from Blues great Peter Reid and club captain Seamus Coleman.

An occasion that began with an organ recital of Z-Cars and ended with a rendition of Spirit of the Blues was fuelled by stories of the countless acts of support provided by Mr Kenwright, who died in October at the age of 78. The Dean of Liverpool, the Very Reverend Dr Sue Jones, opened proceedings by welcoming the congregation to remember "a beloved son of this city, to give thanks for his life, to comfort one another in our grief, in the presence of God and to celebrate his proud legacy."

Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, then told of being given a lift back to London by Mr Kenwright after a midweek win at Reading in 2015. The Everton season ticket holder said Mr Kenwright spent the journey making personal calls to each of the players involved to discuss their performance - stating it was an experience that helped him to understand how the club had been able to inspire such loyalty from talented players coveted elsewhere, like Tim Cahill and Leighton Baines, both of whom were in the audience.

Mr Burnham concluded with the words: "Nobody was a bigger blue than Bill. Nobody had a bigger heart than Bill, a true son of this city in every way. You always gave us your best. You left it all out on life’s pitch, and for that we are all so much richer.”

That sentiment was echoed by Margaret Aspinall, former chair of the Hillsborough Family Support Group and whose son, James, was one of the 97 Liverpool supporters who were unlawfully killed in the stadium tragedy. Mr Kenwright was a passionate backer of the campaign for truth and justice, speaking at the Anfield memorial service in 2013 when he famously declared those who stood in the way “have taken on the wrong mums”.

Ms Aspinall said: “That speech - it was iconic. It was a wonderful, wonderful speech. It was genuine; it was from the heart… So, on behalf of all the Hillsborough families, and indeed on behalf of our city, we’re all going to miss Bill tremendously. I for one will miss him a great deal. I have some lovely texts from him that I’m going to keep and I’m going to treasure forever. I’d like you all to know that Bill Kenwright will never ever walk alone.”

Everton legend Reid told how Mr Kenwright, who joined the Everton board of directors in 1989 and became chairman in 2004, had offered the club’s Finch Farm training ground to his brother’s Warrington Town side ahead of an FA Cup fixture with Exeter City. Before ending with the words “true Blue, love ya, take care” he told the watching Sean Dyche that a trophy success this season would be a fitting tribute. Blues boss Dyche was present along with the first team squad ahead of the club’s Carabao Cup quarter-final with Fulham on Tuesday night. Of that group of players, current club captain Coleman told how Mr Kenwright had given a thirty minute speech to the players ahead of the crucial win over Newcastle United under Frank Lampard - who was also in attendance.

Coleman concluded: "Everton Football Club was his life. The chairman's love for the Football Club was something remarkable and he helped me understand what Everton Football Club meant to people. He wasn't just our chairman, he was our greatest supporter. He cared for the players and their families and he was always at the end of the phone through the good times and the bad times. He was a passionate and inspirational man."

Other key figures in the audience included former Everton players Duncan Ferguson, Phil Jagielka, Peter Reid, Graeme Sharp, Adrian Heath, Dave Watson, David Unsworth, Joe Royle, Lee Carsley, Kevin Campbell, Tony Hibbert, Leon Osman, Victor Anichebe and ambassadors Ian Snodin and Graham Stuart. Liverpool FC greats Sir Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush, Phil Thompson and John Aldridge were also present on an occasion that was far from a sombre affair, with Reid’s push for silverware one of many light-hearted moments.

Twice, the service was interrupted by ringtones from different parts of the audience. Both played Z-Cars. After the second Mr Kenwright’s life partner, Jenny Seagrove, paused and said: “That’s Bill.”

Ms Seagrove had stopped by Mr Kenwright’s childhood home on Botanic Road in Wavertree before the ceremony. In a moving tribute, followed by a reading by Mr Kenwright’s daughter, Lucy Kenwright, she said: "I want to say my Bill but he wasn't my Bill - he was our Bill. He was a man, who, as I think everyone has said, never left, never forgot where he came from.

"Of all the people in my life I've ever met, he was the one person who really, really defined the word love. He loved me, he loved our dogs, he loved our home, my word did he love his family... He loved his friends, he loved the people he worked with who became his extended family and, oh, he loved his club. The Royal Blues. The Toffees.”

Isaac Lancel Watkinson, who sang Whistle Down The Wind, and Wet Wet Wet singer Marti Pellow, who performed Dante’s Prayer, left the cathedral spellbound, while Spice Girl Mel C ended the event with Tell Me It’s Not True from the musical Blood Brothers. Her performance came after Everton FC chaplain, Reverend Henry Corbett, and Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of Liverpool, the Right Reverend Tom Williams, signed off the blessing with the Blues motto Nil Satis Nisi Optimum.

While football was a major feature of the tributes paid, Mr Kenwright’s spectacular influence in the arts was given fitting prominence by Rufus Norris, artistic director of The National Theatre. Speaking of the role he played in backing the arts, he said Mr Kenwright “revitalised” and then became “the lifeblood of the touring network”, explaining: “There is barely a stage in the UK that doesn’t have Bill’s blood, sweat and endeavour in its floorboards.”

Fittingly, the final words came from Mr Kenwright himself, however, as the service signed off by a clip of him ending an interview by saying: "So, from the bottom of my rock and roll heart, for the last time... Good night and God bless".

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