Janey Godley has colourful comedy send-off at funeral in Glasgow

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Janey Godley had asked family and friends to wear colourful outfits at the service

Comedian Janey Godley has been given a colourful comedy send-off in Glasgow, with Scotland’s former first minister Nicola Sturgeon among the mourners.

The funeral at St Mary’s Cathedral in Glasgow saw many family and friends wear colourful outfits and ended with her catchphrase “Frank, get the door”.

The Scottish comedian died earlier this month at the age of 63, after receiving palliative treatment for ovarian cancer.

Godley found viral fame by making voiceover parodies of Sturgeon’s news briefings during the Covid pandemic, before the pair became friends.

PA Media Sturgeon wearing a bright read coat stands in front of a hearse with a coffin covered in flowers.PA Media

Nicola Sturgeon became friends with Godley after her parody videos during Covid

PA Media Storrie wearing glasses and a black cape with long curly hair in teh middle of a crowdPA Media

Ashley Storrie said she could not repeat her mother’s jokes in church

PA Media Gavin Mitchell hugs a man in the middle of shot, at the right is a large man with grey heair and glasses and  a younger woman with red lipstick on the left. All are wearing dark colours.PA Media

Scottish comedian Gavin Mitchell was among the mourners in Glasgow

Godley’s daughter Ashley Storrie spoke at the service, saying she would not be able to do any of her mother’s jokes as she was in “a house of god”.

Storrie, 38, a comedian and radio presenter, said: “My mum was very much a daughter of Glasgow, she loved her city dearly, it was her favourite place in the whole wide world.

“The emblem of Glasgow is the tree that never grew, and the bell that never rang, and the bird that never flew, and the fish that never swam, and I think she took that as a challenge.

“It felt like the world was telling her, be quiet, stay small, don’t get big, so she did the opposite.

PA Media Janey Godley, with short grey hair, dark glasses and a red bandana on her head, smiles at the camera with a stone wall and green park behind her PA Media

Godley died after living for a number of years with ovarian cancer

Storrie also thanked hundreds of mourners who lined the streets of Edinburgh on Friday, to see the hearse carrying Godley on her “final tour” ahead of the funeral.

It was held on the same day as a memorial service for former first minister Alex Salmond, at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh.

Sturgeon, who became friends with Godley after her online videos, attended the Glasgow service and said it “encapsulated Janey perfectly”.

She added: “She was a special woman, she was so close to my heart. She’ll be a greatly missed.

“A lot of tears in the church but also a lot of laughter, and that’s how she would want to be remembered – with joy and laughter.”

Gavin Mitchell, who played Bobby the Barman in BBC Scotland sitcom Still Game, was also among the mourners at St Mary’s Cathedral.

The funeral ended with a recording of her saying, “Frank, get the door” before the church doors opened.

Godley used the catchphrase to end each of her Nicola Sturgeon Covid parodies. It was also the title of her 2020 book.

PA Media A black hearse in the middle of a road with  a small crowd of people wearing warm looking jackets and carrying bags clapping their hands.PA Media

Crowds gathered in Glasgow to see Godley’s hearse leave after the service

At the service, Rev Kelvin Holdsworth praised Godley’s pandemic comedy videos.

He said: “It’s no exaggeration to say that it’s likely there are people alive today because of Janey Godley, because of funny wee videos, and because of the truth she told on stage.

“She kept them going through lockdown, and because people were able to make use of the advice that they were being given through what she said.”

Godley has said her Frank catchphrase was based on a man who read “cowboy books” at a pub she worked in.

Born in the east end of Glasgow in 1961, Godley was a landlady before establishing herself on the comedy circuit.

She became known to a wider audience across the world for her protest against Donald Trump’s 2016 visit to Scotland, where she held up a sign with an offensive word describing the then president.

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