Funeral held for late partner of Rev Richard Coles

It's been an emotional day for one of the region's most high-profile clergymen.

Broadcaster the Reverend Richard Coles was supported by friends and family at the funeral of his civil partner the Reverend David Coles.

David Coles died aged 42 in December after a long-term illness. The service was held in Finedon in Northamptonshire, where the couple lived with their dogs at their vicarage.

Following the death of his partner, Richard revealed that he'd been subjected to vile abuse. He wrote on social media that he'd received "99.99999% loveliness" since the news was made public, but added that others had sent him hurtful messages - including one person who said his partner was “in hell” and that he “will follow”.

Citing another example, Coles posted: "A letter, courageously unsigned, begins: “Dear Mr Coles, I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am to hear of the death of your partner...”.

However, in a follow-up tweet, he said that he was determined to not let the trolls get him down: "The horrible letters; they don't touch me. "I am right now an expert in pain, the real kind, and these are paper darts among the incoming, and just leave me mildly curious about the state of mind of the writer.”

Today, Richard posted to his 255K followers on Twitter, “if it is your custom and tradition please remember him [Rev David] in your prayers”.