Testimonials
Below are some of the very humbling testimonials I have received-
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“Richard was quite simply superb. Caring, professional and funny and he made a sad day really special.” – Nov 24
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“We are deeply grateful to Richard for the compassionate and thoughtful service they provided for my father’s funeral. His ability to capture the essence of my father’s life and convey it with such warmth and sincerity was truly remarkable. From the very beginning, Richard took the time to listen to our stories and understand who my father was, ensuring that every word spoken during the service was a true reflection of his character and the love we all had for him. His empathy and kindness brought comfort to our family during this difficult time, and his eloquent words provided a sense of peace and closure. The ceremony was beautifully conducted, with a perfect balance of solemnity and celebration of life. Richard created an atmosphere that allowed us to honor my father’s memory in a way that felt personal and meaningful. His professionalism and genuine care were evident in every aspect of the service. We cannot thank Richard enough for their support and for making my father’s farewell so special. His dedication to his role as a humanist shone through, and we are forever grateful for the lasting impact he have made on our family. My mum has requested that when its her time to go she wants Richard to take her service”. – Oct 24
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“Richard was great! From our first contact Richard made our funeral planning and delivery easy. Richard did a home visit where he listened to our stories and facts about dad. Following this it was clear that Richard had taken considerable time to draft the words for the funeral ceremony and was happy to adjust when we wanted to change a couple of things. On the day Richard was warm and friendly and delivered the ceremony perfectly. We couldn\’t of asked for more. Thanks Richard! We recommend Richard for your event wholeheartedly you will not be disappointed :-)” – Oct 24
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“Richard made the process from start to finish so simple. From the initial meeting at our home to discuss our son’s Martins life, with family members to the wonderful service, he made the whole process simple and was very understanding. The service was beautiful, I am sure our son when looking down would have been proud. Richard made a difficult occasion much easier with his warmth and professionalism”. – Oct 24
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“Richard did our dad proud at his funeral today. All the guests commented Richard struck the perfect balance between being respectful and bringing a light heartedness to the service, with humorous stories and fond memories. Richard was also really welcoming of amendments made after the initial meeting, making sure we were fully satisfied with a reading that painted a perfect picture of my dad. Thanks Richard!” – Sept 24
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“Richard was our 25th Wedding Anniversary vow renewal celebrant. He is absolutely fantastic. Richard guided us through the process via a number of zoom calls prior to our ceremony, made contact with our kids for their contributions, sorted the Music and delivered the vow renewal perfectly. Richard was our celebrant when we renewed our vows at 20 years. An entirely different occasion, just us two and Richard in the Lake District – that was brilliant as well. Highly recommend Richard, superb at what he does and a thoroughly lovely bloke” – Sept 24
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“I have had the pleasure to be at quite a few funerals that Richard has officiated at. At every one I have felt uplifted by the time I left the chapel. Richard has a knack of being able to talk about someone as if he has actually known them personally, without stepping over a line. My Mum was 79 years old when she passed away but it was standing room only at the Crem so it showed how much people thought of her and Richard managed to get that message across beautifully. 99% of the friends + family that were there came out with a tear in their eye but also a smile on their faces, happy tears. I staunchly believe we should celebrate our lives when we pass on, if you agree make Richard your choice to deliver, with bells on!” – Sept 24
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‘You couldn’t ask for a more appropriate person than Richard to conduct a service. He is friendly, humourous, sensitive but also very professional. 100% recommend him to friends + family’ – Sept 24
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| “Was an absolutely beautiful service conducted by such a professional and compassionate man. Everyone was very impressed who attended as Richard was loud and clear and portrayed our little girl beautifully” – Sept 24 |
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“Richard was recommended to us by Neal Buckley Funeral Services Penwortham. A few minutes into our first meeting with Richard to discuss the tribute service for mum we knew he was the right person to deliver the service and that mum would have really liked him. He took time to talk about mum’s life which spanning 97 years there was a lot to talk about. He made the process very easy for us. He was very compassionate and on the day delivered mum’s tribute brilliantly. We couldn’t have asked for anything better. Many people afterwards commented on how lovely the tribute was and how well it had been delivered. Thank you Richard for everything”. – Sept 24
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“Richard was compassionate and caring when gathering information for the tribute. He gave a wonderful overview of my dad’s life blending it together with the music we chose” – Aug 24
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“A most likeable chap. Caring and sensitive and a great sense of humour.” – Aug 24
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“Myself and my family were very pleased and happy with Richards service, I would highly recommend him”. – Aug 24
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“Richard made the whole process from start to finish so simple. From the initial meeting to discuss my brothers life with the family to the wonderful service, he made the whole process simple and was very understanding. The service was lovely and I’m sure my brother would have been proud.” – Aug 24
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“an absolutely wonderful memorial service for my husband. couldn\’t have wished for anything more” – Aug 24
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“Richard was fantastic, took the time to really get to know the details of our family and delivered a fantastic ceremony”. – Aug 24
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“Richard was simply the best celebrant that we, as a family, could ever have wished for. The way he told the story of Dads life at the service got his full story across with lots of smiles to go along with the tears. He dealt with us in such a caring manner & his kindness will be remembered always. So many people have come to us since the service to ask for his details saying they would definitely go to him for a service in the future, hopefully a long time in the future though”! – Aug 24
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“My wife would have loved it and my self and family had many great comments after. He did a great job for us. Thank you” – Aug 24
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“Richard was fantastic, took the time to really get to know the details of our family and delivered a fantastic ceremony”. – Aug 24
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“Richard was simply the best celebrant that we, as a family, could ever have wished for. The way he told the story of Dads life at the service got his full story across with lots of smiles to go along with the tears. He dealt with us in such a caring manner & his kindness will be remembered always. So many people have come to us since the service to ask for his details saying they would definitely go to him for a service in the future, hopefully a long time in the future though!” – July 24
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“Richard led the service at my mum’s funeral. He was very kind and professional and took time to get to know us as a family while we gave him mum\’s life story. The eulogy was well written and delivered perfectly with compassion and humour. Thankyou Richard.” – July 24
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“Richard made a difficult occasion much easier with his warmth and professionalism . At the meeting before the ceremony he asked excellent questions that enabled me to reflect on my mum and create a beautiful service. Everyone who attended said it was a lovely ceremony”. – July 24
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“Richard is an excellent Celebrant, and ensured that my Husband’s funeral was a very special occasion”. – July 24
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“Richard recently led the service for my dad’s funeral. He took the time in getting to know both Dad’s life story, and us as a family, and as a result, delivered Dad’s eulogy as if he knew him. We wanted the service to be a celebration of Dad’s life rather than be all doom and gloom and Richard certainly delivered on this, with his charisma and humour, and we found ourselves laughing more than crying throughout. We’ve had so many comments on how brilliant Richard was and what a beautiful service it was. We couldn’t recommend Richard highly enough!” – July 24
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“Richard was recommended to us by Anthony at D Hollowell and Sons. When we explained about our family he said he knew the perfect person, Richard. Sitting waiting for Richard to arrive to discuss how the service would run was so daunting for us all, we struggled through grief and shock to recall our memories of an amazing husband, dad and brother. Upon meeting Richard within minutes he put us at ease. He reassured us that we would all be OK, and with his amazing communication skills he enabled us to open up about all of our memories, the tears very soon turned to happy ones.
The service on the day, I can only describe in the words of everyone that attend ‘the best funeral’ they have ever attended. This is something I never thought I or anyone would ever say. It was all about Mike, our Dad, a loving husband to our mum, brother and friend. It was real and relatable at every single moment. I have never sat in a service before and been so emotionally comfortable enough to laugh at the memories which Richard had captured perfectly, even the cheeky moments in life my dad had.
I honestly can not thank Richard enough for the time you gave us as a family and the most amazing send-off that was well deserved for our Dad, and more so for my mum who was obviously wanting the absolute best for her husband, which I can say Richard delivered honourably.
I would also like to thank Anthony from D Hollowell and Sons, for recommending the perfect person for the service. They also provided such amazing care for our dad, and our family too every step of the way. We all thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Mike’s family” – July 24
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“If anyone is looking for a humanist to give you a service to remember be it A silver anniversary/renewal of vows for us or your wedding or maybe sadly a funeral Richard is the man for you.. he is remarkable at putting the service together. Last year sadly I lost my son and as you can imagine is the worst time of your life but the ceremony he performed at his funeral became the most memorable day and last week at our anniversary/ renewal of vows was absolutely wonderful and humorous making again a day to remember.” – July 24
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“He was absolutely brilliant came to talk to us was sensitive and asked plenty of questions we couldn’t have been more happy with the service” – July 24
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“Richard conducted my husband’s funeral after we found him online where he had lots of positive reviews. We hadn’t organised a funeral before so we were anxious about choosing a celebrant as we wanted to make sure we gave my husband a really good send off. As so many celebrants have little online feedback about their services, we felt confident reading feedback about Richard. As soon as we spoke to Richard over the phone, he made us feel at ease and we felt confident that he would create the right atmosphere on the day as his approach is very much about celebrating life and not being sombre. When we met with him to discuss my husband’s life, it felt like a lovely walk down memory lane being guided along the way by Richard. Following this we really felt he understood my husband’s life, and how we spent time together as a family. On the day of the funeral, Richard showed us so much warmth to make us feel at ease (as much as one can feel on such a sad day) and he really did my husband proud in talking about his life, balancing respect and humour perfectly. Such was Richard’s skill in capturing my husband’s character and personality, a neighbour thought that Richard had known my husband personally and that we were lucky to have a funeral celebrant as a friend!” – June 24
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“I would like to thank Richard for his services in the recent passing of my beloved mum. I gave Richard a lot of information which he really listened to and created a beautiful and absolutely perfect presentation of my mum which me and my family will cherish for life. I felt he really took the time to understand the kind of person my mum was and even managed to reflect her humour into the service. I would now never use anyone else. Thank you Richard ” – June 24
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“Richard gave my mum an amazing send-off. So professional. From the planning to the delivery, he has outstanding. I can’t thank him enough” – June 24
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“It was better than we ever expected. Every one that was there commented on how beautiful it was. Richard made our day that extra bit special” – wedding June 24
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“Richard gave us a true account of who my brother was, with kindness and thought of all the details I told him. He made the difficult day more bearable with his caring, kind and pleasant voice. I can’t thank him enough”. June 24
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“I felt that Richard really wanted to capture the essence of mum, to understand why she was so special and express this in mums service. Richard was also very aware of what I wanted to say about mum in my own words and worked with me and the family to ensure we expressed everything we wanted and reassuring us throughout this difficult time. It was a lovely and fitting service, thank you Richard.” – May 24
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“Richard gave our family such care in a relaxed atmosphere both before and during our loved ones funeral. All who attended said it was a beautiful Farewell, full of love. Richard made what would have been a horrendous day into a beautiful memory for us all” – May 24
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“Richard was wonderful in both the preparation for the ceremony and during the ceremony. Offered such a personal touch, and really brought my dad’s life story to life for those who attended. I highly recommend.” – May 24
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“Richard led the service for my Stepdad, Joe. The whole experience was faultless and the feedback on the ceremony was universally positive from everyone who attended. Richard spent 3 hours with us to get to know Joe and this translated into a really perfect reflection of Joe’s life on the day. I cannot recommend Richard highly enough”! – May 24
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‘Richard took time with us as a family, to share our memories and prepare for my nephew’s funeral. On the day he delivered the ceremony beautifully, with care, empathy and compassion along with some laughs. Thank you, Richard, for a wonderful send-off Caroline’ – May 24
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‘Thank you Richard for your valuable emotional and practical support when you spent time with me compiling John’s tribute for his recent funeral. our delivery on the day was superb with a tone and diction that was friendly and supportive to all. Your presence made a difficult day much more manageable than it might have been.’ – May 24
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‘Richard was brilliant conducting the lovely Celebration of my sister Patricia\’s life. He captured the whole thing fantastically, he engaged the audience and was also very amusing and accurate about all the things we told him about Patricia. Thank you so much, Richard.’ – Apr 24
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“Richard was a delight. So understanding and utterly caring of my needs. Could not of wanted more. Funny, compassionate and just all round a lovely person” – Apr 24
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“Richard was excellent. From the first meeting, we had total confidence he would conduct our mum’s funeral ceremony perfectly. When we re-arranged the date of the funeral he kindly altered his plans so he could still be involved. He was very professional and supportive throughout the process helping with the eulogy and we received very positive comments over the service. We would definitely recommend Richard to deliver a humanist ceremony! Thank you so much!” – Apr 24
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“Richard’s approach to planning and delivering our dad’s service was very caring and careful – particularly as a large family with multiple timelines to cover! Richard spent plenty of time with us, stayed in touch in the lead-up to the service and really looked after us on the day too. His tribute to Dad was well crafted, interesting with some humour in the right places – his tone was perfect. We’re so pleased we chose Richard.” – Apr 24
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“The delivery of the service was welcoming warm and well-spoken. Richard spoke well of my Dad and made my family proud which added with ease a positive and peaceful final journey for my Dad and the family.” – April 24
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“Absolutely beautiful send-off for my nan. Nothing was too much for Richard even at short notice he was absolutely brilliant” – April 24
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“Just want to say a huge thankyou to Richard he was so warming gentle helpful and most importantly patient and professional. Everything was done amazingly. He helped me and my family with what needed to be done and I no my mum would of been laughing at the service. Thankyou again I shall be in touch for my wedding thankyou x” April 24
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“Richard was superb and made the whole process so informal, personal and pleasant. We could not have asked for a better ceremony for our late father and that was in no small part due to Richard. His time spent with us before the ceremony certainly enabled him to get a really good idea of who our dad was and how much he meant to people” – March 24
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“Richard did a brilliant job. He managed to create exactly the right atmosphere and tone that beautifully reflected my late wife Sue’s character. She would have loved it. Thank you Richard. If you require the services of a humanist celebrant you need look no further”. – March 24
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“Richard had previously conducted my father’s funeral 6 months ago, so to have him conduct my mother’s funeral was perfect, his understanding of the family allowed him to find the words that truly encapsulated my mother’s life, and this was commented on by all those who attended, which has made a difficult day a true celebration of her life.” – March 24
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“From the moment we met Richard we knew he was the perfect person to conduct my husband Paul’s funeral. Richard took time to learn about Paul’s life and his character. He imparted Paul’s story to our family and friends in a loving and caring manner. Richard was our rock on a very sad and emotional day” – Feb 24
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“Richard was brilliant. He celebrated my Father’s life in such a wonderful way. The whole Family spoke extremely highly of him”. – Feb 24
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“Richard was professional but supportive to myself and my family and conducted the arrangements perfectly and delivered a very moving service to celebrate my dear mum’s passing.” – Feb 24
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“Richard Spedding was there from start to finish he was excellent &so professional throughout the family’s difficult day … the service was beautiful & as we would have expected it to be … Thank you again Richard” – Feb 24
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“I have chosen Richard on 3 occasions each time he has been more than amazing”. – Feb 24
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‘A very kind and supportive guide for my Aunt’s funeral. Guided us through the service and was amazing at picking up the essence of my Aunt and supporting us in creating the eulogy and leading us through the funeral. A massive thank you from me and the family’. – Feb 24
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“10 out of 10! Highly recommended! Richard was the humanist conducting our late Mum’s Funeral service on 6th Feb 2024. We met a week prior to the funeral to draft Mum’s story. Richard showed a real interest in getting to know Mum’s story from childhood, hobbies, music and later life. He was patient and kind and we knew from that meeting he would deliver a great service for Mum. On the day of the Funeral Richard told Mum’s story with care, kindness and humour. Richard’s emotive wording really captured the essence of Mum’s personality it really did feel like he had known her for years, and he brought Mum’s story to life! People at Mum’s service were very impressed with how well Richard conducted the service. Richard showed true professionalism from the off, and great communication throughout as well. Thank you so much Richard for being our Humanist you made a difficult day more bearable for us. If you a looking for a humanist I would highly recommend Richard! Riki, Amy and Becky” – Feb 24
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“Richard was wonderful! He helped me and my family to provide some structure to the afternoon and made the room light up with a beautifully curated account of our young brother’s life. Richard was detailed focused and most importantly, funny. It was perfect.” – Feb 24
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“Richard made my son come alive. He made it very much a celebration of his life. Though there were tears there was a lot of laughter”. – Jan 24
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“Richard took time and showed a real interest in getting to know about my Dad and then delivered a lovely service with the content being exactly what the family were looking for. He showed empathy and compassion and made the service a celebration of his life and achievements.” – Jan 24
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“Richard was brilliant and attentive to the needs of the family we would definitely ask for Richard to conduct a ceremony again thanks very much Richard you are a pro” – Jan 24
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“Richard was so supportive, thoughtful and professional. Together we drafted a celebration of Mum’s life that showed her personality, her warmth, and uniqueness that Richard presented splendidly. We cried but we laughed too and the service was joyful and uplifting. The perfect send-off. For me Humanism is the way forward. I would definitely use Richard’s services again and will recommend him to my friends if they are choosing a non-religious ceremony. Thank you Richard, you did us proud!” – Jan 24
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“Richard was excellent in his delivery at my father’s funeral. He balanced professionalism with a very warm and friendly approach and could not have done better for myself and my family. Thank you.” – Jan 24
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“From start to finish Richard was welcoming and professional, he put us totally at ease and helped us bring back family memories we didn’t know we had. The ceremony itself was brilliantly written and he did my dad proud. After the ceremony everyone was in agreement that it was a wonderful tribute to my dad” – Jan 24
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‘Richard Spedding was the most caring person to give the service of a celebration of my husband’s life’. – Jan 24
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“Richard conducted a humanist service at my mother’s funeral this week. This was a difficult funeral due to a family being split up over a long time. Richard approached the funeral in a very professional way. After a few discussions and contacting other people who knew my mother, Richard put together a coherent and uplifting humanist service from what had been a very fractured family situation. People who attended said that they found the service interesting and that it made them reflect not just on my mother’s life but also upon their own life situation. Richard’s kind and positive words to me in private also helped me to make sense of things, and to steer me through the days of the funeral preparation. Many thanks for everything Richard.” Jan. 2024
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“This was a very difficult time for me and the way that Richard approached and conducted the ceremony was exemplary. I have been to many funerals and this stood out because it flowed nicely, nothing was rushed and everything was covered. It helped me a lot with dealing with my grief and coming to terms with my loss” – Jan 24
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“Richard was amazingly caring, and was able to deliver a complete and honest picture about my father and his life that reflected all his aspects, he helped us remember the good times and helped us grieve and celebrate his life”. – Jan 24
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“Richard prepared very thoroughly so, although he had never met my partner, the ceremony was very warm, personal and relevant” – Dec 23
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“A very fitting and well thought out and a perfect celebration of my son’s life Thank you”. – Dec 23
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“My family and I can not say enough about Richard. We’ve now had the unfortunate, yet fortunate opportunity to interact with him for two of our beloved family members passing. He did such a great job with our Steven we were thrilled that he was available to eulogize George. Richard has the ability to truly understand and know a person through their family and friends. He takes the time to speak directly with everyone involved, even coming to see them personally when he can. He was notably invested in articulating the true essence of both Steven and George. It was such a comfort to all who were there.And we were told by many congregants how moved they were. He seamlessly navigates both emotional and humorous themes while understanding the pain that the family is in. We have all been to a number of funerals that felt impersonal. Richard makes you feel like you are sat at the table, sharing a pint with someone who has also experienced this loss and is trading memories with you. He makes sure to make everyone he speaks about feel honored and acknowledged. He takes the time to not only learn their names and role in the person’s life, but also personally greet them and find them in the crowd when speaking about them.” – Dec 23
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“This was the second time Richard has conducted a ceremony for members of our family. From start to finish he was kind, caring and keen to learn the exact details of my parent’s lives. He brings a fantastic energy, injecting humour in the right places and carefully following every detail throughout the ceremony, making it a perfect send off for my Mum. He creates a very trusted professional relationship with you, where you can feel safe to share detail to ensure that the ceremony is the best it can be. Richard helps make it a celebration of life, just as it should be. Thank you, Richard” – Dec 23
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“So highly professional. We were engaged from the very onset and Richard brilliantly combined our words and writing into a perfect collection of statements, broken up by music, portraying my wife’s life and love for her family. It was also delivered in a wonderful way and ran so smoothly, it was perfection.” – Dec 23
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“My husband had very particular ideas of how his funeral should look. Finding someone who would embrace them so fully was a complete joy.” – Dec 23
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“Brilliant service for my dad” – Dec 23
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“The service reflected our Dad’s life. For the younger generation of family members, it was a better way for them to attend a funeral. It was light-hearted and made us all smile about his life. Richard put everything in place and everyone at ease. I would recommend him in the future. Many thanks from mum and all the family” – Nov 23
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“Richard helped to make a sad, stressful experience into an informative, interesting account of my husband’s life. He entered my home a stranger and at the end of the service, he felt like a friend. Thank you from all that attended the service” – Nov 23.
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“Richard spent time with us, learning of the life of my father-in-law, and double-checking every detail before offering it for us to proofread to ensure it was to our satisfaction. He injected humour into the celebration of Dad’s life, even using one of Dad’s old red cards from his refereeing days to end the service. His very professional and relaxed attitude, made, what could have been a very sombre day for all of us, into a memorable occasion for all the right reasons. All of the people who attended agreed that it was a much better send-off and have stated that they would consider using Richard’s services in the future and have taken his details from us for future use. We would like to thank Richard for his excellent services and would highly recommend him for his caring approach to our Dad’s celebration of life”. – Nov 23
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“My lovely Dad deserved a wonderful send-off – that’s what he received and Richard had a huge part in that. I wanted the service to be fun and celebratory of Dad’s life, and Richard did more than that – he had the whole crematorium laughing throughout. Dad would have loved his words. It was perfect.” – Nov 23
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“Richard helped us all celebrate my late brother’s birthday. It really helped the proceedings and put a big smile on all our faces“. – Nov 23
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“Richard is professional, warm and caring. From our first phone contact to the final email, we found him to be an attentive listener and a good communicator. He made the process of creating an unexpected Celebration of Life feel manageable and inspired confidence that all would be well. We had a long family consultation with him to give details of our father’s life and to share our thoughts and memories. We all wondered how on earth he would manage to pull all the pieces of the puzzle together to provide a private family cremation followed by a Celebration of Life for a large gathering of friends, colleagues and extended family. We also set Richard the daunting task of managing five people asked to speak words in tribute and to weave these together with all the information he had gathered from the close family. Quite a challenge in such a short space of time. On reading Richards’s final script with Mum we had a few tears here and there and some giggles too. Our overriding feeling was that it was a truly fitting and lovely tribute. On the day Richard ensured everything flowed so well. He made great efforts to introduce himself to those he had not yet met and including those he knew would be referred to in the tribute. Richard was sensitive to ensuring the pace of various speakers. He ensured space for quiet moments of reflection and moments where it was important to keep the pace going. We feel sure Dad would have been really pleased with how the day went and so proud of everyone\’s efforts, not least Richards, in bringing things together to help everyone to celebrate his extraordinary life of many parts”. – Nov 23
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‘An excellent orator. Did my Grandma proud. Thank you so very much Richard’. – Nov 23
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“We had an excellent meeting with Richard to discuss what we wanted from the ceremony and then he took the time to discuss the life that my dad had, and particularly the impact that he had on our lives. Richard guided us very well in preparing our own input to the ceremony and he got the tone exactly as we wanted it in delivering the ceremony.” – Nov 23
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“Everybody commented about the excellent service conducted by Richard. His support and empathy towards me and my family was lovely. Thankyou” – Oct 23
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“We would just like to say a MASSIVE thank you to you not only for delivering the most perfect ceremony but also for being a friendly face on the run-up to the big day. We had no doubt that you would do a fantastic job and we have had so many lovely compliments about it. Guests loved how personal it was to us and how well you told our story. It was the best decision to have a humanist ceremony and we are so glad we chose you!” – wedding Oct 23
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“First class ceremony. Very very good I don’t think it could have been better. I would certainly recommend Richard” – Oct 23
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“Richard’s diligence and attention to detail really paid off. The attendees asked me if Richard knew my husband, just like Richard said they would. It was a wonderful send-off” – Mar 23
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“We would just like to say thank you Richard for conducting the Service for my Dad Tony’s funeral, it was just what we wanted and you delivered it brilliantly, in fact everyone who attended the Service said how fantastic it was, so once again thanks very much. Nicole and Family” – Sept 23
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“I couldn’t have asked for a better celebrant at my brother’s funeral than Richard. He was helpful and caring from the very beginning and went to a good deal of trouble to find details of my brother’s life from me. He organised those details into a thoughtful and meaningful reflection on my brother’s life and conducted the ceremony with sensitivity and in a well-organised way. A number of people in attendance spoke to me afterwards and said how impressed that they were with the ceremony, something that was in no small part was due to Richard.” – Sept 23
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“Richard’s delivery of the service was excellent and met all our requirements.” – Funeral Sept 23
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“Richard was great. We knew from the first day we met him that he would do an amazing job and could tell we asked the right person. Even from the first phone call, Richard made us feel at ease and after the first home visit, he took everything on board that was said. On the day it was presented beautifully with a lovely keepsake of the ceremony and all of the words. Would 100% recommend.” – naming Sept 23
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“Richard delivered a service very professionally and covered many points of interest to the listeners. He had previously delivered a service for another member of our family and had already met my wife before delivering my wife’s service.” – Sept 23
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“Richard spent a great deal of time perfecting the ceremony and I feel that it couldn’t be improved upon. The content was accurate and very well presented. His attention to detail was second to none. A very professional and friendly man.” – Sept 23
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“Richard was personable, professional and accommodating. He took the time to listen carefully to our family\’s thoughts and memories about our late father and delivered a warm, personal reading which was a comfort to the family and helped us say goodbye properly.” – Aug 23
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“Richard spoke clearly and with feelings to tell my fathers story and was well received by all presence. His attention to detail and small personal touches helped make an emotional day very special. I cannot recommend him enough.” – Aug 23
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“I’d like to thank Richard for making my darling husband Andy’s funeral a happy occasion. Richard made it a wonderful celebration and a fitting tribute to Andys life.He made his final journey a very lovely experience and I and the family would like to thank him very much for everything he did for us and would recommend him to anyone.” – Aug 23
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“Richard has done several funerals for my family or my partner’s family when he was alive. He is professional, caring and understanding to everyone’s needs. He always goes the extra mile to make the day perfect. Thank you so much Richard” – Aug 23
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“Such a lovely send off for my Mum and Richard helped to make everything a lot easier on such a difficult day Thankyou Richard” – Aug 23
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“I felt that Richard had taken a great deal of time to find out about our Dad and captured him perfectly” – Aug 23
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“Richard conducted our wedding ceremony on 31.07.23 and it’s a day I’ll never forget. After searching for someone I came across Richard’s Instagram page and I had a good feeling that he would be a perfect fit for us. This was further cemented after a Zoom call we had before booking. The whole process from booking to the ceremony itself was perfect. Richard’s script was incredible, it captured us perfectly. It was emotional, humorous and full of love. We loved it, our guests loved it and so many people came over to us after the ceremony to say how beautiful it was and how amazing Richard was. Richard, I can’t thank you enough and if anyone is thinking about a humanist ceremony there’s no one I’d recommend more” – wedding July 23
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“Richard is an amazing guy, brilliant at what he does we couldn’t be anymore thankful” – July 23
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“Richard did a fantastic job of helping us to remember our Mum in what was a beautiful ceremony. He was so kind and helpful throughout the whole process and helped everything to run smoothly. Would highly recommend this type of service to anyone.” – July 23
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“Richard did an amazing job he got my brother done to a t.” – July 23
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“He was very good in all aspects from gathering the initial information to completing the ceremony Great job Thanks” – June 23
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“Richard was the celebrant for my darling sister’s (Julie-Anne Bisel) funeral on Friday 23rd June 2023 at Lytham Crematorium. I knew that she wasn’t a religious person at all and that she would prefer a celebration of her wonderful life. Julie-Anne lived her life to the fullest extent, and she fit at least 100 years into her short 57 years of life. I had previously heard Richard speak at a dear friend’s funeral over 10 years ago and found the way he effortlessly brought calmness, dignity and resilience to the attendees at this service astonishing and made me instantly think of him to guide us through the very sad and difficult task ahead for my sister. June 23
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At the home appointment, Richard made myself and my brother feel very safe and comfortable when asking about our personal recollections of Julie-Anne by teasing out conscious and unconscious thoughts and memories of different stages throughout her life. In the week before her funeral Richard kept in touch with us regularly by phone and email sending updated versions of her life’s story for comments and amendments until the final accepted presentation.
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During the service, Richard was extremely professional with his warmhearted and occasional humourous presentation of my sister’s life and he demonstrated considerable empathy and compassion throughout. Many comments from friends and relatives afterwards were really complimentary about how he delivered ‘the life of my beautiful sister’ with a combination of confidence, joy, integrity and humanity. Thank you Richard.” – June 23
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“I can’t thank Richard enough he made my Dad’s send-off perfect. We have used Richard twice for the funeral of our Mum and now our Dad. He left a place in our hearts and that is why we chose him again for my dad’s and we weren’t disappointed. From the moment we instructed our funeral home, he contacted us and scheduled his visit, went through everything and on the day he was perfect and everyone commented on how wonderful Richard is.” – June 23
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“I have known Richard as a colleague and friend for many years. Knowing how professional he is, and that he is a man of the utmost integrity, he was the obvious choice as a celebrant when my Father passed away. Richard spent a considerable amount of time with my Brother and I prior to the service in order to gain an insight into my Father, and his life. This added considerably to the depth and quality of the actual service and a number of friends and family members later made positive comments about Richard’s style of delivery. My close family and I were very impressed” – June 23
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“Such a warm friendly personable and genuine person. This is the second funeral I have attended where Richard had taken the service on both occasions I can really tell the care and attention to detail taken by Richard when he creates his scripts for the ceremonies. His scripts are a work of art and allow the congregation to really connect with the celebration of their loved one’s life. Highly recommended, I wish I had known of him back in 2018 for my mother’s funeral” – June 23
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“Richard did a splendid service everyone was saying it was a lovely service people were commenting on how they would like him to do their funerals” – June 23
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“Richard wove all our memories into a life story that brought Peter back to life for everyone. It was a true celebration of his life.” – June 23
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“Richard was wonderful the ceremony was exceptional as my son died in such tragic circumstances” – May 23
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“I met Richard to discuss my husband’s funeral and instantly knew he was the right person to deliver the ceremony as I wanted it. He kept in touch to let me know what the final reading would be and ask if I wanted to make any changes. On the day it was perfect. Just the right amount of humorous memories. It really did feel like a celebration of my husband’s life rather than the complete sadness of a traditional type of funeral. Thank You Richard.” – May 23
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‘A lovely day. He made what could have been a hard day so much easier. Many people in the congregation said it was a lovely tribute and so personal. No words can praise him enough.’ – May 23
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Thank you Richard for a sensitive very personal service at such a difficult time. It\’s hard to please all the family, but you succeeded. I was worried Alan\’s family might object to my choice of a non-religious funeral, but they loved it. It was perfect.’ – May 23
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‘Richard was awesome! He was friendly & relatable & asked all the relevant questions to deliver a wonderful, poignant & witty service. He did my dad proud! Thank you so much Richard xx’ – May 23
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“Entrusting somebody to paint a picture of the lady you’ve loved for over 50 years and sadly lost, is no small task. Richard took time to get to know my beautiful wife despite never having met her and spoke with authority about her life and the things that shaped her and mattered to her. I’m so sad to have lost her but pleased that with Richard’s help and skill, we saw her off with the right level of humour and dignity.” – April 23
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“Richard did an excellent job from the first time he met us to delivering the service. What is a very emotional time is made a lot easier because of the way Richard talks to you and guides you through the whole process. He makes you feel like nothing is too much trouble and even has you laughing as you recall the happier times. Thanks, Richard we appreciate everything you did for us during these past 14 months when you conducted the services for our dad and mum.” – Apr 23
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“This gentleman Was very kind and caring and helped me to Come to terms with losing my son His service was second to none And I will highly recommend him As he did my son Christopher proud”. April 23
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“He was extremely sympathetic, warm, humorous and super-efficient. He synthesised our somewhat disjointed memories of my late sister into a coherent narrative which he delivered with eloquence and compassion. I\’d not hesitate to recommend him to anyone who wants a loved one sensitively eulogised.” – April 23
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“Richard from start to finish was excellent. He understood what we wanted and delivered the wedding ceremony perfectly. The guests kept complimenting how good Richard had been”. – April 23
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“Everyone at my husband’s funeral could only say lovely things about it, some even said for a funeral it was the best they had been to.” – April 23
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“Very friendly. Great communication. Easy to contact. Ceremony flawless.” – April 23
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“What can I say … What a lovely man. Richard spoke about my Dad as if he knew him most of his life . There were almost 200 people who attended and the funeral and the compliments were endless after the ceremony and the following day on how good Richard was when celebrating Dad’s life. It was filled with loving thoughts, happy memories, humour, care and compassion. We will be eternally grateful to Richard for his professionalism and can not thank him enough for speaking about the fantastic man that I was proud to call my Dad x” – April 23
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“Richard made the funeral as happy as it could be. He included in the celebrations all that John and I wanted – Plus. All the people I spoke to following the ceremony had nothing but praise for the way the ceremony was conducted. One person, in particular, said she came away feeling uplifted. Thank you.” – Mar 23
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“Richard conducted the most touching and poignant of ceremonies for my late father, Raymond, perfectly capturing his personality and character. His attention to detail and the efforts he made to ensure everything was just as we wanted made an emotional day much easier to bear. Richard was also very caring towards us and his professional, warm and genuine approach was a real comfort. Thank you so much.” – Mar 23
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“Richard did a wonderful job for our dad yesterday. He made us feel proud to have had such an amazing man as our dad in our lives. He encapsulated everything we wanted said about him with warmth and humour and really captured the sort of man he was. Receiving a copy the eulogy to keep after the ceremony was a really lovely gesture too. Also, he was incredibly kind to myself and my sister and looked after us during the ceremony with such compassion which was so very much appreciated. He made the journey of saying goodbye you our dad a very poignant and beautiful experience and we can’t thank him enough. We would highly recommend him to anyone.” – Mar 23
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“Richard put our family at ease and got us talking and reminiscing about our husband/father within minutes of meeting us. He listened, made notes and in due course delivered a touching, eloquent, humourous and loving testimonial. We cannot recommend his services highly enough and we will forever appreciate his professional and courteous help at a very difficult time.” – March 23
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“From Richard’s initial interview at my home, my whole family had a strong impression that he would do a good job and he did his subtle amendments to Jean’s life story and his flawless presentation impressed us as well as members of the congregation.” – Feb 23
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‘Absolutely fabulous! Richard was fantastic, had great communication before the ceremony, and provided a very personable service. All attendees commented on how lovely he summed Dad up, with wit, and empathy and shows genuine interest in the person he is talking about. Excellent all round and I would highly recommend Richard for any non-religious ceremonies.’ – Feb 23
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‘Richard is a lovely person who puts you at ease and genuinely cares and wants to do his best for the family he is supporting. He is very professional in everything he does. Would definitely recommend him’. – Jan 23
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‘Richard guided us as to how to plan the event, he was well presented, on time and perfectly prepared, He “top and tailed” our ceremony perfectly and was supportive throughout’. – Jan 23
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“The celebrant is excellent at following the widow’s feelings & family memories to conduct the ceremony. Very good at creating the right tone & appropriate atmosphere” – Jan 23
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‘Richard was recommended to me by friends of my Aunt, and also by the local funeral directors. I was a bit daunted, as I have not had to organise any kind of funeral before, and I was not very familiar with humanist ceremonies. Richard was so approachable and friendly, and soon put me at my ease and gained my trust. He listened very carefully when I talked about my Aunt’s life, and delivered an exceptionally professional ceremony. I was so pleased with his work that I would thoroughly recommend his service to absolutely everyone.’ – Jan 23
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‘Richard was very friendly and took time to meet with members of the family, share experiences and gain a good understanding of the person our mother. We were very pleased with Richard’s professionalism, natural empathy and ability to put together a suitable service. Everyone who attended said they were very happy and impressed by Richard’s personality, delivery and humour’ – Dec 22
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‘Richard could not have been any better. He was so kind and thoughtful and everyone who attended said it was the nicest service they had attended.’ – Dec 22
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‘Richard made a very difficult day into a wonderful celebration of my brother’s life. We chose Richard as he had conducted funerals I had previously attended and I was very impressed with his work.‘ – Dec 22
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‘Richard is a professional caring respectful person, Was impressed how dignified the ceremony was performed’ – Nov 22
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“Richard captured my Nans personality so well and everyone that attended said how beautiful it was. I am so appreciative to Richard for making the whole process so lovely and easy.” – Oct 22
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“Richard was absolutely faultless. Everybody commented on what an amazing service he did. I forgot that Richard actually never met my grandad, because the way he spoke about him, it felt like he did.” – Oct 22
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“The service was perfect, Richard listened and was accommodating making adjustments as I wanted, his presence was very calming and I felt his empathy, he delivered Roy’s life story in the correct tones, it was funny at times, poignant and serious when appropriate, allowing us time to reflect not only on my brother’s life but ours too, the very sad day was made more bearable thanks to Richard Thank you again” – Oct 22
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“Richard carried out a Humanist ceremony for my Father’s funeral and I cannot thank him enough for making the day so special. From finding out as much information about Dad beforehand to delivering something very special at the funeral made the day all that more special for my family. I wouldn’t hesitate in recommending Richard; he made a very difficult day perfect for us. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, Jan and Chris” – Oct 22
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“Richard was fantastic from start to finish. He made what was a hard process to deal with a lot smoother and put me at ease over the time running up to the ceremony. His suggestion for my daughter to write a poem was a fantastic touch.” Sept 22
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“Helped me and my family work through the eulogy, giving us ideas and how to present it. Was on hand to take over from my 13-year-old granddaughter when she was unable to speak her part. Gave us confidence in his ideas and was sympathetic in his approach.” – Sept 22
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‘We have had so much feedback from the family and friends who attended saying how wonderful the service was and how it reflected her life. A lot of hard work was put into the content and the delivery of the service was excellent.’ – Sept 22
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‘Richard is amazing. He has conducted my mum’s funeral, my husband’s funeral and now my dad’s. I highly recommend him’ – Sept 22
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‘Richard was so compassionate and professional, he put so much effort into making the service personal, and the attention to detail was incredible, you would have thought he actually knew my father. We had so many comments on how good he was and what a lovely service.’ – Sept 22
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‘From meeting Richard to his interaction with the family to his thorough and thoughtful research and his nothing was too much attitude he made a difficult time much more bearable. We would highly recommend him to anyone but have tea and biscuits ready!!!!! Exceptional service’ – aug 22
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‘I would highly recommend Richard for any service. Richard conducted my Nana\’s funeral. From the off, he was kind, approachable and professional. Richard really took the time to get to know my Nana, he took all of our stories and gave life to them on the day, making the service a less painful experience and more celebratory all round. I really couldn\’t have asked for better and appreciate how Richard handled the entire situation with delicacy and care for all of my family who were extremely nervous about the funeral. My Nana’s friends took time to comment on how well the service was conducted and how they were able to take time to laugh and remember my Nana with love, thanks to Richards wonderful words. Thank you so, so much!’ – Aug 22
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“From start to finish Richard was very professional, approachable and personable. During our initial meeting, he listened carefully as we discussed mum’s life and he asked the right questions to get stories and anecdotes about mum. He looked after us during the ceremony and delivered a wonderful eulogy which had everybody engaged and laughing. It was perfect. After the ceremony, Richard gave the family a typed presentation of the eulogy as a keepsake which was a very pleasant surprise. I would highly recommend him.’ – Aug 22
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“We could not of asked for a better service, Richard was absolutely brilliant he described our mum to a t and made the day less painful. He was both professional and friendly” – July 22
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“Absolutely amazing. So chuffed with the work Richard did and the final ceremony was perfect. Highly recommended, would definitely use Richard again. We wanted a more personalised ceremony. A religious ceremony would have been inappropriate. It meant we could have the ceremony where we wanted.” – wedding July 22
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“Richard really did go above and beyond to make the funeral as perfect as can be. He worked around our availability and made us feel very welcome throughout. Really impressed with Richards service. Thankyou.” – July 22
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“My mum was a very private person and there were things which are normally talked about at funerals that I knew she wouldn’t want to be included. Richard prepared a script that was everything I hoped it would be. Many of her friends commented to me afterwards that they thought the service was perfect and said it was exactly the sort of thing they would want for themselves. Richard made me feel at ease from the moment we first met and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him. He even stayed for a while after the ceremony to chat to some of mum’s friends.” – June 22
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“The ceremony was beautifully conducted by Richard, he put us all at ease right from the first point of contact.” – Vow renewal June 22.
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“Richard was absolutely brilliant from our 1st meeting up to the actual event. We could not recommend him enough and he made our Vow renewal day really special.” – June 22
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“Richard treated us with great dignity, humour and compassion. He is a lovely person who made us feel at ease straight away.” – June 22
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“Richard made a connection with everybody at the ceremony. His speech was funny and sad, and the poem at the end had everybody smiling and talking. Richard brought everybody together at my uncle’s funeral.” – June 22
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“From the moment we exited the funeral car, Richard made us all feel comforted at such a sad time – he came up to us, shook our hands and reassured us. The service was the first humanist one I had been to, and it was refreshing when compared to a standard church service – Richard took the time to speak to members of the family beforehand to discover about my Grandad\’s life and then told the story of his life in the service in such an emotive, respectful, and yet humorous way – adding light to the sadness, which was much appreciated. After the funeral, Richard presented my Nan with a printed version of his script, which was a really nice touch for my Nan to keep as a keepsake. The service was just what my Grandad would have wanted – a more informal celebration of his life, as opposed to the formality and grief-focused church funerals. I sincerely thank Richard for his service.” – June 22
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“Richard delivered a positive, sensitive and engaging ceremony, interspersed with humorous anecdotal stories. It was a beautiful tribute to our much-loved son, Carl.” – June 22
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‘Richard was wonderful, He made the whole experience such a joyful celebration, which is exactly what my late husband wished for. He took the time and trouble to get to know our family and although he did not (through various circumstances) get to meet Brian(my late husband), his service was as personal as it could be. Everyone who attended spoke about Richard in glowing terms, and rightly so. He helped make a very difficult day so much easier than it could have been. I cant thank him enough’ – May 22
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‘Excellent presentation just what was wanted. Portrayed the deceased just as he would have been liked to be remembered. The presentation touched a note with everyone who was there. Full marks all round for Richard from all concerned’ – May 22
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‘I didn’t know what to expect and I was nervous when I first spoke to Richard, but in a short while I felt like I was talking to an old friend, the service was just how I expected a celebration of life to be, family background, old stories told in a new way with sincerity and humour, only a few of us there but everyone recognised Dad in some part of the service. Thank you’ – May 22
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‘I have now had Richard conduct both of my parent’s funeral services, they were divorced many many years ago but it was my brother and my wishes after Richard had performed Mum’s in 2020. I feel very honoured to have had Richard be part of both. He was an absolute strength to my family and I. He paid so much interest to the finer details., checking every step of the way until the last minute. I would never hesitate in recommending any other person ever again when it comes to a funeral service. Religion has its place for those who need it, but I would much rather celebrate the life that was lost in the funeral service. I did joke about a “Buy two, get one free” as my brother is getting married soon! Seriously though – Richard will be my go-to Humanist for any kind of service. Thank you once again for everything.‘ – May 22
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‘Richard was the perfect Celebrant on behalf of the family and friends of my mother. Warm, professional, empathetic, a listener, immaculate. A man who after meeting with the family described my mother’s journey through life beautifully, empathetically remembering the part played in it by everyone she knew’. – May 22
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“Richard was great, even though he did not know my husband with the information given to him he did good for him, very precession and would highly recommend him” – May 22
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‘Lovely ceremony conducted by Richard, he had taken a lot of time to research the deceased’s life and speak to family/friends. The ceremony was kept joyful and lighthearted, whilst remaining sensitive and respectful.’ – May 22
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‘Richard took the time to hear and talk to us about our relative. Reflecting the person they were. Bringing dignity and humour to the service, helping us to reflect on the life lived’. – May 22
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“Richard spent time with us getting to know the history of our deceased relative. He listened carefully and picked up on the important events that we wanted mentioning. He also went out of his way to include family members and friends who had been important in the life of our deceased relative. He was in contact with us several times to ensure that we were happy with the content of the eulogy. On the day the Celebration of our deceased relative’s life was conducted with, pathos, humour, sympathy and empathy for all who attended. Everyone commented on the content and delivery that Richard delivered on the day. The content and delivery were excellent and Richard conducted himself with great poise and respect for our relative. Overall, we were very happy with how Richard managed the service and would thoroughly recommend Richard to anyone thinking of using a Humanist for a funeral. We would personally like to thank Richard for his patience, attention to detail and his caring and compassionate nature. Linda and Dennis” – May 22
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‘Richard did a fabulous job. Every one who attended said it was a lovely ceremony’. – May 22
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‘I have worked with Richard in my previous job as a Funeral Director and I knew that the compassion, personalisation and dedication he brought to funerals would be exactly what he would provide for our wedding. It was a no-brainer in choosing him for our special day. Richard was everything we hoped for. I cannot fault or criticise anything from the service he gave us. There was not a dry eye in the house! The entire ceremony was about us (myself and my husband), which is why we chose to have a humanist ceremony. We got to write our own vows to reflect our personalities and relationship. And we had secret emails read out at the ceremony- the memory of which will stay with me forever, as it was such a beautiful touch. It also meant that we could get married at home, in a place that means so much to us. We just popped to the registrar\’s office the day before for the \”legal bit\” and then got to celebrate our way the next day. Richard is definitely in the right profession, that\’s for sure!’ – wedding April 22
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‘Richard spent a lot of time getting to know me and my family to gather information about my nan so the service could be as personal as we and she would have liked. He conducted the service professionally.’ – May 22
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“Richard was brilliant, came out to the house and listened to lots of memories and really brought jess\’s life out in the ceremony.” – April 22
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“Richard was most professional and sincere. Everyone commented on how lovely and personal the service was and how engaging Richard was. His communication was second to none. We were all very happy with the service and would choose Richard again in a heartbeat. We can not thank you enough” – April 22
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“From the moment we met, we knew Richard was going to be perfect for Mum\’s funeral. He was warm and friendly and made a very difficult time much easier. He delivered a really lovely personal ceremony, full of tears and laughter, a proper celebration of Mum’s life. Everyone who attended was full of compliments about him and we can\’t recommend him highly enough. Thank you, Richard!” – April 22
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“Richard turned my brother’s death to life and it was wonderful to hear him speak about David. He listened to all we had to say and was warm, professional and accommodating in the short space of time he had to prepare. An excellent choice for me.” – April 22
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“Richard was a total professional and completely approachable, caring man who went out of his way to put us at our ease at this most difficult time. His conduction of the celebration of my husband’s life was remarked upon by many at the ceremony as being truly wonderful. He was lovely to work with, consulting us and involving us but also doing a lot of groundwork himself, and it showed! First-class, Richard!” – April 22
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‘Richard did my dad a great service, and there was not a dry eye in the house. He presented dad’s life with care, empathy and humour.’ – Mar 22
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“From my initial meeting with Richard I felt totally comfortable knowing that the service would be handled with the utmost compassion, true feeling and professionalism. Richard took the time to listen and research, ensuring that he had correct and factual content which ultimately led to his respectful, personalised and uniquely tailored deliverance. In times of loss and grief, it is comforting to have the right guidance and support and Richard provided this – a genuinely nice person. Thank you.” – Mar 22
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“Richard was extremely welcoming, he was very friendly, very calming when conducting the ceremony. Everyone commented how lovely he and the service was. My late father would have been extremely proud of what Richard said and the way he approach the day.” – Mar 22
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“Richard is so lovely and put us all at ease the moment we met him. He has a way that is informal and friendly, yet professional and experienced in what he does. It felt as though we had known him some time, as opposed to meeting him for the first time at one of the most saddest and difficult times of our life. Richard was understanding and reassuring as well as organised and took control when we needed him to. We felt we could put our absolute trust in him and he ensured the service was delivered with precision and just how we had wanted and imagined it to be. We set out to do our dad proud and give him the send-off he truly deserved and Richard totally helped us achieve that. Thank you so much, Richard.” – Mar 22
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“Richard clearly enjoys the work and respectfully brings a sense of celebration to an otherwise sombre event.” – Mar 22
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“Richard made us feel at ease and comfortable from our first meeting.. he took the time and was generally interested in my Dad’s life, making it natural for us to share our memories and stories with him. On the day of my Dad’s celebration, Richard welcomed us and made us feel a little less anxious. Richard spoke lovely words about my Dad from our previous discussions in a calm and joyful manner. His conduct was warm, professional and friendly.. making the whole family feel involved throughout. Thank you, Richard.”- Mar 22
“Richard put us all at ease the moment we met him and made a very upsetting time in our lives more comfortable. After the ceremony at which there were over 100 people everyone said it was the best service they had attended and the praise for Richard was never-ending” – Feb 22
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‘From meeting the family to presenting the cremation Richard was absolutely pleasant and perfect in every way.’ – Feb 22
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“Lovely ceremony, handled very professionally by Richard who supported us throughout the whole process” – Feb 22
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“Richard did a very good job creating a fitting personal tribute for my brother. The service was delivered beautifully and Richard was warm and caring”. – Feb 22
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“Absolutely amazing from start to finish. Gave us everything we wanted from our day for Dad. Would Absolutely recommend without hesitation” – Feb 22
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‘Richard goes above and beyond to provide a personalised, sensitive celebration of life. I cannot speak too highly of him’ – Jan 2022
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‘With such genuine warmth, care and compassion, Richard was the perfect person to help us through. He creates the most wonderful service that captures the person perfectly. A fitting tribute to the person you love‘. – Jan 2022
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“Richard did a brilliant job in creating the kind of funeral that we all wanted. Thank you Richard.” – Jan 22
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“Made a terrible time in my life acceptable and understandable. My brother and I were so close. Richard really helped me with Lionel’s passing. The service was a celebration of his life. So grateful.” – Jan 22.
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“Richard was absolutely amazing when he conducted my husband’s funeral. I would recommend his service to anyone. Thank you, Richard” – Jan 22
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“2nd time we have had Richard conduct a burial for our family, and as in the 1st time he did a very good job, many people commented on how good the service was.” – Jan 22
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“Richard looked after us very well. The ceremony was a burial, without an indoor service, so a graveside service. Richard consulted with us all the way through and came up with a script which reflected our wishes and our mother. He conducted the service very well so that everything went to plan. He was even able to play our requested music on a small speaker beside the grave which added to the occasion very well.” – Jan 22
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‘We had a small gathering at our mothers funeral, and Richard was excellent at leading the proceedings in an empathetic and dignified manner. He was always very professional whenever he contacted us and responded promptly to any queries. I had complete confidence that Richard would lead the ceremony how we and my mother wanted. Thank you.’ – Jan 2022
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“Thank you Richard for your dedication and genuine care throughout the whole process! You made our day very special.” – wedding Dec 2021
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“Richard was a gentleman and we felt he was really interested in getting to know our mum/ nanna. He was easy to talk to and a very nice chap” – Jan 22
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“Richard was amazing! He is so good at what he does and is the nicest person. He conducted the ceremony beautifully and I can’t thank him enough for making it so special.” – wedding Jan 2022
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“I was confident from the start that I could rely on Richard and was not disappointed. I find it hard to describe but he just ‘nailed it’ and it felt like he had known my brother. Comments from friends and family were very positive along the lines of ‘what a lovely service’ and ‘ wasn’t he good’.” – Dec 21.
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“Richard was brilliant he went above and beyond We wanted humour and that’s what we got he spent a lot of time making everything perfect and was a great support too thank you so much” – Dec 21
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“Richard was brilliant would 100% recommend him. He is a lovely chap and very gifted at what he does – he writes beautiful life stories and got my Dads story perfect. He turned a sad day into a celebration and everyone who attended my dads funeral said it was the most personal and perfect funeral they had been to because it was, as it should be all about the life of the person who has died. Richard spent a lot of time finding out all about my dad and was able to ask the questions that without him we probably wouldn’t have remembered. Thanks Richard we are so happy we found you x” – Nov 21
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“Richard was fantastic, he gave it 100% kept in touch all the way through if any changes were needed he would do it, thank you richard for outstanding service” – Nov 21
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Richard by far exceeded our expectations. Many of the guests commented on how it was the best funeral service they have ever attended. My mum was so deservedly the most important part of the service, and just as we wanted we celebrated her and didn’t fill the time with prayer. It was her strength of character that she fought illness with and that needed celebrating……..what an AMAZING man Richard is, he got it so very right for us as a family – Nov 21
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“Richard Spedding was amazing. So friendly and made me feel relaxed enough to do my eulogy to my husband.” – Nov 21
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“Richard Spedding was wonderful in conducting the service. To be highly recommended” – Nov 21.
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“Richard did a fantastic job researching Bob\’s life, and he knew the right questions to ask to tease out the interesting stories about Bob\’s life. He paid great care and attention, and delivered a wonderful service that was a true reflection of Bob\’s life, and was enjoyed by everybody. As a result of this experience, I definitely want a Humanist service when I pass away; so much nicer than a religious service, whatever your beliefs”. – Oct 21
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“Richard was amazing with how perfect his eulogy was for my beloved late mother. Everything that my dad and myself said about my mother’s history was A+. When Richard came to my parent’s house he was so warm and friendly and made us relaxed when we were talking about my mother. Thank you Richard from all my family for what you did on my mother’s day of celebrating her life. Highly Recommended.” – Oct 21
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“May I thank Richard Spedding for a brilliant ceremony. He presented the eulogy so well. Cannot fault. If there was a 5-star rating I would give it 6. Care and attention to detail and family were excellent. From beginning to end his handling of what is a sad occasion made a great impression on my family and everyone attending. I will strongly recommend anyone thinking of a similar ceremony not to hesitate to contact him. My sincere thanks to Richard.” – Oct 21
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“Richard spedding was absolutely beautiful today he brought Ilias’s story of life alive so professional with a caring presence and so very articulate and his choice of words were fitting and it was as though he knew ilia’s all his life I was so very overwhelmed my his generosity of making the service so very perfect. thank you Richard from the bottom of our hearts all my family just thought you were perfect in the delivery of a fine story told of ilia’s. Your touch at the beginning was so very welcomed by all and your amazing ability to make my family and I know you were going to do such a wonderful job so smart and showed respect and empathy.” – Oct 21
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“Richard did an amazing job, he was caring and kind and I would definitely recommend him” – Oct 21
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“Richard was kind and empathetic with lots of good advice. He produced an accurate story of my husband’s life and exploits, presented with respect and humour. He had great presence and fulfilled the ideas we had for a celebration of a loved one’s life. All the friends present congratulated us on the celebration, many never having heard of humanism. We thank him for making the occasion so appropriate and memorable” – Oct 21
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“Richard was very professional and made our family feel at ease at a very difficult time. On the day, the way he delivered the speech was beautiful. He had the perfect content about my father and his life. It took all the pressure off us as a family but was a fitting tribute to Alf. Many many thanks (The Holden Family)” – Oct 21
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“Richard was excellent in every way. He spent a lot of time listening to our history and managed to capture the essence of Cliff in a relatable and engaging way. All the comments from those present were extremely positive and we are immensely grateful to Richard for being an integral part of the day” – Oct 21
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“Lovely service by Richard. Was perfect and very accurate. Lots of people commented how lovely it was”. – Sept 21
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“Richard was great, the entire ceremony was lovely and very relaxed, everybody said they really enjoyed it all, fun, lighthearted and touching.” – Sept 21
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“Richard is a very lovely man, this is the second cremation he has conducted for us. He is such a kind, considerate man. So easy to speak to. Thank you” – Sept 21
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“The service was brilliant. A lot commented on it later and said they had loved it”. – Aug 21
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“Richard did an excellent job of getting to know the family, gathering all our input and weaving our contributions into a meaningful narrative that honoured and celebrated mum\’s memory.” – Aug 21
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“Richard helped us to celebrate our mother’s life in a very caring way. This helped us to get through a very difficult day. He captured our mother perfectly in his words about her life.” – July 21
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“Richard conducted an excellent ceremony and the tone was just right. We were impressed that he managed to capture so much information about my dad in the 2 hours he spent with me and my son and showed a genuine interest in his life which came across during the service. Many people who attended made similar comments to me about how good the service was.” – July 21
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“Richard was very professional and personable. I will certainly recommend him to others in my position. We can’t thank him enough for all he did.” – July 2021
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“I thought Richard handled our situation incredibly well. The family found it quite difficult to talk about Michelle, but Richard put us all at so much ease at such a difficult time. The actual ceremony couldn’t have been done how we would have wanted, had it not have been for Richards’s commitment to honouring Michelle and her personality. We can’t thank him enough.” – June 21
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“Richard worked very hard prior to our wedding to make sure all our details were correct, he had the full “story” of our relationship and what our wishes and expectations were. Richard made what would have been a slightly disappointing wedding within the Registrations Services Rules and Guidelines into an extra special day for us, we enjoyed every moment. Richard made us feel very happy and confident in our choices, he guided us through the ceremony with human kindness and expertise, he fulfilled all our wishes for our special day. We could not have been happier and we can not thank him enough.” – wedding June 21
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“Lost for words, beautiful service, Could not have hoped for better. Thank you Richard means so much x” – June 21
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“Richard did his job very personally and made myself Margaret and everyone that was at Rod’s funeral feel at ease.” – June 21
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Richard Spedding was very helpful and very pleasant to deal with. He spent a great deal of time and effort to come up with the perfect ceremony!! – June 21
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Richard did a fantastic job as the humanist celebrant at my husband Brett’s funeral. From the very start, our interactions with Richard were fantastic and he was very easy to talk to throughout. Richard got a real feeling for the importance music and gigs have played throughout Brett’s and our family’s lives. He was able to add that personal touch by performing Brett’s ceremony in our specified dress code of jeans and a band t-shirt (Brett would have approved of Richard’s Black Sabbath t-shirt!). Richard spent over two hours speaking with the family in order to get a real feel for Brett’s life. He went to every effort to ensure that all members of the family were included and were able to give an accurate account of my Brett’s life; from his early years as a young boy and son, to how I met him through to memories our children have of him and stories that his best friends wanted to remember him by. Although Richard never met Brett, he relayed a really accurate, heartfelt and, at times, amusing account of his life. Richard had promised that he would make people leave the chapel of rest with smiles on their faces. Despite it being a very sad day, he certainly delivered on this promise and I have had lots of people comment on how wonderful the service was. Thank you Richard for making a difficult day a lot more bearable and for sending my much-loved husband off in a way that he would have approved of and been proud of. – June 21
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“At this very difficult time we found Richard to be very understanding and caring, as we went through the background for the service he listened to us and offered advice where needed but mostly just listened and the actual service ended up just as we had hoped and enabled the true nature of my husband to came across.” – June 21
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Richard did an amazing job at my mums funeral. He made the day feel a little easier and brought my mum’s personality back to life. I do not think it could have been any better. We will be forever grateful to him for the kindness he showed us. We came away from the funeral with smiles and felt that we had celebrated her life. – June 2021
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“Absolutely done my dad justice. My dad never wanted any sombre he wanted laughs and that’s exactly what he got. Richard was in constant contact to make sure that everything was correct and went smoothly. I will definitely be recommending Richard to anyone who needs him. No amount of words or comments will do justice to what Richard conducted yesterday just please know that all of my family loved it and we can’t thank you enough. I just regret not having him conduct my wedding.” – May 21
“Thought he conducted the service very well and summed up someone’s life in the relatively short time he had. Made us laugh, made us cry, made us remember a joy to listen to”. – May 21
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“Richards involvement in the funeral of my father provided much more than simply conducting the memorial service, he helped our family reminisce about my dad’s life, recall memories and articulate what he meant to each of us. For me, this was the most valuable important and rewarding aspect of his input. Richard was always considerate, friendly and approachable, his ability to listen and identify those nuggets of information that would add texture and colour to the eulogy was impressive. Several attendees specifically commented on how authentic, warm and accurate Richard was in painting an accurate picture of my Dad’s life.” – May 21
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“Richard did an excellent service for us which more than met our demands and was of the highest standards possible making a difficult time so much more of a celebration of life and a lot better for us!” – May 21
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“Richard approached the whole preparation and execution of the ceremony very professionalism, humour and empathy. All the practicalities were clear and concise and at every step of the way, he ensured I had a full understanding of what needed to be done. The ceremony itself made people on the crematorium feel at ease and left with new stories and memories of those that had been part of with a smile on their face. It is always good to be at a humanist ceremony where there are more smiles than tears.” – April 21
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“Richard conducted my mums funeral in January 2019, as a family, we hadn’t been to a humanist funeral before and we didn’t really know what to expect. From the moment Richard got in touch to the end of the funeral everything was perfect, from the care taken to making everything feel that little bit more personal, it makes a very hard time a lot easier. My dad passed away at the beginning of this month so when arranging the funeral after Richard conducting my mums, a humanist ceremony was the first and only option for us (my Grandad asked for Richard personally straight away). This time was no different to the last, Richard is fantastic and the way he spends the time and really wants to get to know the person he’s going to talk about, the care and empathy shown are second to none. From the home visit to the funeral itself, the communication, even the little touches like the final script to keep, you feel safe in the hands knowing someone cares as much as you that everything is perfect as it was for both my mum and dad. As a family, a humanist ceremony is the only one we would have now, and after both funerals, people have asked us about them with people also enjoying how personal they are.” – April 21.
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“With empathy, warmth and compassion, Richard conducted a beautiful ceremony to help us reflect and remember my little brother. He listens and cares. At such a difficult a time, he supports you through.” – April 21
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“Richard worked closely with us as a family to provide a service as beautiful and unique as Johnny was. Friends and family have provided so many positive comments about the service and although it was such a sad day with many tears, Richard injected warmth and appropriate humour to also make us laugh and smile.” – April 21
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“Richard was amazing. Very patient in collecting the memories and life experiences of our mother and gave a service that everyone loved. Cannot recommend Richard enough.” – April 21
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“Richard did a wonderful job of creating an uplifting atmosphere to celebrate what was important in my Dad’s life. The ceremony was just right.” – April 21
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“Richard Spedding was very helpful and especially welcoming to me and all my friends that attended the funeral. He was very well organised leading up to the funeral which made the day a lot easier.” – March 21
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“Very professional. All my dad’s wishes for the funeral were fulfilled. Thank you Richard!” – March 21
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“Wonderful ceremony full of warmth and humour, most fitting for my cousin, the deceased.” – March 21
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“Richard’s attention to detail was exceptional. He was friendly, approachable and made us all feel totally at ease. His understanding and empathy shone through especially when you were talking about my dad and reminiscing about his and our and lives together – Nothing was too much trouble, but most of all, his time was our time………………….and that meant a lot – thank you, Richard” March 21
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“Absolutely by far, the best send off ever! Thank you Richard you did us and my late father proud” – March 21
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“Richard did a superb job today at my brothers funeral. He was warm and funny but respectful and mindful at all times. We wanted people to know a little bit more about Nick when they came away and that is exactly what Richard allowed to happen. For that, I will be eternally grateful.” – March 21
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“It was perfect. So many people commented on it and said they would have a humanist celebration too. It was perfect for dad. Richard was so reassuring and comforting to both of us.” – March 21
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“I was extremely happy with the service today I couldn’t thank Richard any more honestly beautiful from start to finish and couldn’t have asked for anything more I’m truly grateful he was amazing and done my mum proud wouldn’t have wanted the service to go any other way thank you so much from the bottom of my heart” – March 21
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“It was very easy to talk to Richard. He made a very difficult easy to cope with. His attention to detail was excellent. He a lovely and caring man.” – March 21
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“Richard was most helpful all the way through the process. Explaining everything that would happen and the reasons behind why the curtains would have to be closed at the end of the ceremony. He conducted the ceremony with the utmost empathy directing his comments to the people who had bought up the memories in our meeting. He could see at the end of the ceremony my wife was not dealing well with the grief and made a point of speaking with her for quite a while to ensure she was OK. My wife and I would have no hesitation in recommending Richard Spedding to anyone who needed a Humanist Ceremony”. – Feb 21
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“Richard understood our family dynamics and conducted the ceremony with dignity, consideration and humour which was very much appreciated by the family. It was my Mum’s funeral and we feel she would have approved wholeheartedly” – Feb 21
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“I found Richard very approachable. He helped me a great deal with the wordings. All and all he is a lovely man and helped me through the service. Thank you Richard .” – Jan 21
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“Richard has been extremely friendly, sympathetic and professional throughout the whole planning and dealing with the family on the day. His warm personality and calm demeanour ensured that my mum & dad had the send-off they both deserved. The time and effort Richard put in preparing for the ceremony by having a zoom meeting with me and my brother and taking the extra time to ring one of my mums surviving sisters meant their life stories were factual, funny, interesting and a wonderful reflection of their lives together.” – Jan 21
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“Richard was very professional, thoughtful and understanding in what we required for my dads funeral, his tribute to my dad was perfect and presented very well.” – Funeral Jan 2021
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“I found Richard online as we live at the other side of the country and did not know of any other celebrants due to not being in the area. I really liked what I read about him. He made every effort to make us feel comfortable and I was delighted to receive the Presentation Pack which was very unexpected. I rate him very highly and would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone else who was considering a humanist ceremony. A job very well done during our difficult time.” – Jan 21
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“Richard was warm and kind with some humour. Which was exactly what we wanted.” – Jan 21
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“Richard was brilliant, very understanding of our family issues and attentive. The service was uplifting, respectful but with a touch of all important humour” – Jan 21
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“Just wow. With Covid looming we scheduled a wedding and with no doubt, we knew we would have Richard provide the ceremony. Resilient and flexible doesn’t even cover how much Richard had to deal with – from me flapping like a madwoman to the dates changing three times. Providing us with our ‘Journey’ on Christmas Eve no less was completely glorious and meant the world to us. Thank you. From the bottom of my heart, you made sure our story was told- even when I cried to you about that never being the case- and I will forever be grateful 
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“Richard Spedding was lovely, he came up with carefully chosen words in relation to my Uncle Michael, and conducted the service perfectly. I’m so glad he was our chosen humanist for the funeral. Thanks greatly Richard.” – December 20
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“Richard is very professional, approachable and delivered dad’s service as if he knew him personally. On such a sad and difficult day for mum (who suffers from dementia), he made her smile.” – Nov 20
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“I can’t thank Richard enough for all his time and patience during this stressful time. Nothing was too much trouble for him, communication was excellent right from the start, right up until the service. Thank you so much were all really grateful for everything you did. And the service was a beautiful tribute to my dear wife.” – Nov 20
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“In these weird times where you can’t meet up doing a zoom meeting with Richard really helped. He put us at ease, not rushing us at all, having a little joke etc. Worked so well, and when we met him on the day, he didn’t feel like a stranger”. – Nov 20
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“Richard was excellent in gathering the information about our mother during a two and a half-hour meeting on Zoom. He listened intently and made a number of notes which were put together very well and gave a good tribute to our mother during the service” – Oct 20
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“Richard could not have done anymore to ensure the experience of arranging a funeral was as painless as possible, and his efforts made for a smooth-running service on the day, which was praised by all who attended. He delivered everything I wanted and more.” – Oct 20
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“Richard was absolutely outstanding, he made the whole service about my mum. EVERYONE at the service commented on Richards ability to portray mums life.” – July 20
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“Richard showed empathy to myself and my family. He included everyone and gave each person time to reflect on their own religious beliefs during the ceremony. The service conducted with positivity, humour (where appropriate) and even sadness where needed. After all there needs to be a balance in all things in this life and also death. Richard was very good at picking the important things from what must have been upset people who didn’t always say what they meant. Well done Richard you are a credit to what you do and for such a wonderful service please feel proud of yourself. Thank you from the whole family” – Sept 20
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“My father wanted a Humanist ceremony as he was not a religious man at all. He was quite anti-religion and felt that relying on faith was to abdicate his responsibility to himself, his family and his community. Having attended many religious funerals he wanted a much more personal tribute and choosing a humanist ceremony meant that he could meet the celebrant before and therefore have control over what was said and how things were done. He was absolutely right and Richard lived up to and exceeded his expectations. Richard obviously spent a lot of time and energy in getting to know my father whilst he was still with us and this showed in the Tribute he wrote. Richard captured the essence of my dad so well that I can’t imagine a better send off. Richard listened to my dad’s very definite wishes and ensured that all aspects of the funeral were carried out following my dad\’s directions. The whole ceremony was perfect and I am so pleased that we chose Richard to do this final tribute to my wonderful father. Richard spent a lot of time ensuring that all my dad’s wishes were exactly right and even arrived early to ensure that he knew the timings for the music and to be able make it exactly right. Words can’t express my gratitude. Thank you Richard.” – Sept 20
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“Richard’s delivery of my mother’s life, her loves and interests was wonderful – he was sincere, relaxed yet respectful. He made eye contact with individual members of the family when referring to experiences that linked them and he smiled and laughed with us. He made a difficult time memorable.” – June 20
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“Richard and the funeral company were absolutely perfect. What a lovely chap Richard is and a pleasure to have him as our celebrant. It was just perfect. Thanks to you all from me and my family.” – Aug 20
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“Thank you for all the effort put into my mother’s service. Richard was very professional and friendly putting us at ease on the day. My sister and I were overwhelmed on the day but Richard led the way and helped us before and after. Very friendly and approachable. Thank you.” – Aug 20
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“Richard made what might have been a pretty grim event a positive experience. The tone he set was ideal” – July 20
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“Fantastic man to talk to, calm, funny when needed, really helpful in getting me through a difficult time. From beginning to end remained very professional and friendly. Couldn\’t have asked for a better person.” – July 20
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“I was very happy with the way Richard prepared for and handled the ceremony. I had been dreading it, and he made it a positive experience” – May 20
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“Richard paid great Homage to Mum. Came across very pleasant and upbeat about everything Mum had done. Made everyone feel part of our Mum’s life. A job very well done under COVID virus lockdown” – May 20
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“Richard was very professional and conveyed my mother very well, the service was excellent and a very fitting tribute to my mum, he also spent a lot of time with the family collecting all the information about mums life, Richard spent time talking to the family after the service, a really nice bloke, and the France family would like to thank him for all his hard work’ – May 20
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“Absolutely outstanding service from start to finish Richard Spedding made a very difficult situation bearable for us” – May 20
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“Richard did an amazing service, and despite the sadness of the occasion, it was a lovely goodbye and testament to the life of my wonderful husband. Richard captured the essence of Neil and put all the family at ease in difficult times. Thank you.” – May 20
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“Due to restrictions resulting from coronavirus the ceremony was shortened and we were unable to do everything we wished to. We were very happy with the ceremony we were able to have. Richard was great at enabling us to achieve as much as we could in the time that we had and we felt happy that the ceremony celebrated my brothers life. We liked his warm friendly personality and felt that he was doing his best to ensure that the ceremony lived up to our expectations.” – May 20
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“We held a zoom meeting before due to the lockdown with all the immediate family where Richard went through everything that would happen on the day. He listened to us all and put us all at ease. When meeting him on the day it was like we had met him before. He read everything like he had known my mum. He made everything so personal. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. Many thanks to Richard” – May 20
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“The service was very personal. Richard took a lot of time and trouble beforehand talking to us on the phone, by zoom and contact by email as well as on the day and put everyone at their ease. He was very easy to talk to, quick to reply to any queries no matter what, and everyone said how well he had put together the tribute for my husband and how appropriate it was.” – April 20.
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“Richard was amazing, especially in the current climate and that half my family is in New Zealand at the moment.” – April 20
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“Richard really took his time to gather the right information so the day went smoothly and without any hitch. He also liaised with the funeral director regarding things like the order of service so I didn’t have to worry about it myself.” – April 20
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“Richard put together a lovely service for us. He was always contactable to answer our questions. Thank you, Richard” – April 20
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“I was delighted with the way it was conducted, from start to finish.” – April 20
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“Richard was simply wonderful and delivered a ceremony that far exceeded our expectations. His work to gather information was sensitive and thorough. How he translated this information into a tribute script was excellently executed. His delivery of the tribute was so personal, touching, uplifting, professional and kind. He made us all feel a sense of pride to have known the person we had lost, which helped so much with the sadness that we all felt. Richard was attentive and respectful, very easy to communicate with and offered the right balance between gentle humour and empathy. We feel so lucky to have had him involved in the service for our loved one. Many thanks Richard.” – Mar 20
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“We are all immensely grateful to Richard for his sensitivity and support at this difficult time. Richard was attentive throughout and delivered a wonderful eulogy for our beloved Kath.” – March 20
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“Lovely service with nicely composed tribute, just what my mum would have wanted.” – Feb 20
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“All those who attended found it a positive and relevant ceremony.” – Feb 20
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“Very relaxed and welcoming. Sensitive with humour”. – Feb 20
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“I felt Richard listened to every little detail the family and friend told him. Beautiful memory to share with family and friends. we had comments it was the best funeral they had ever been to Thankyou Richard” – Feb 20
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“Richard was simply wonderful and delivered a ceremony that far exceeded our expectations. His work to gather information was sensitive and thorough. How he translated this information into a tribute script was excellently executed. His delivery of the tribute was so personal, touching, uplifting, professional and kind. He made us all feel a sense of pride to have known the person we had lost, which helped so much with the sadness that we all felt. Richard was attentive and respectful, very easy to communicate with and offered the right balance between gentle humour and empathy. We feel so lucky to have had him involved in the service for our loved one.
Many thanks Richard.” – Mar 20
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“Richard Spedding was so amazing from the moment we met him, he guided us through . We couldn’t have got through the day without him. His empathy and passion shone through and he made us feel totally at ease throughout the funeral.” – Jan 20
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“Richard was fabulous and conveyed our thoughts of Dad perfectly!” – Jan 20.
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“Superb planning and delivery. Richard was very kind, supportive and helpful.” – Jan 20.
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“Richard Spedding was truly superb and hit the right note” – Jan 20.
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“Highly professional, sympathetic and punctual.” – Dec 20.
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“I wanted to say a massive thank you to Richard for making our day so special I will recommend him to all my friend’s very professional great sense of humour x” – vow renewal Oct 19.
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“We wanted to celebrate my father’s life and to share his wonderful memories and stories with our family and friends, my father was not religious, he lived his life to the full and loved his life and we wanted a more personal service that captured the very essence and spirit of him. Richard was recommended by the Funeral Director and he connected with our family in a professional and positive way from the beginning, he put us at ease, was very person-centred and inclusive in his whole approach – we cannot thank him enough for his wonderful presentation of the agreed script on the day. It was everything we wanted to achieve as a family and we are very proud to say that we gave our father the best ‘send-off’ that we could and celebrated his life as passionately as we wanted to and with dignity, respect and compassion” – funeral Oct 19
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“Every single person who attended my husband’s funeral today said to me what a fantastic send-off David has, I cannot thank Richard enough , he was fully communicative throughout the whole experience and made the ceremony feel as though David had not even passed , this was a real celebration of his life , it bought laughter, tears and relaxation, Thankyou so much” – funeral Oct 19
“Richard took time to try and get to know my brother through talking to the family and struck exactly the right balance with his words.” – funeral Oct 19
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“This was a very sad day obviously, but the work carried out by Richard made a lovely memory for us all. The amount of time and care he took to get the details that reflected the spirit of my mum was perfect Thank you Richard” – funeral Oct 19.
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“I was dreading this day as Dad was my rock. Richard made his funeral special and a celebration of his life. Thank you so much a very sad but special day with laughter and Dads personality. Richard was just the right guy for this Dad would have been impressed.” – funeral Oct 19
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“Good morning Richard. I would just like to express the overwhelming response from everyone I spoke to of how you conducted ?’s funeral yesterday. “It was the best funeral I have been to,” said by one friend, sums it up. Your encouragement to those who took part and your contribution from ?’s family were a perfect combination of tribute and humour that I know ? would have wanted. Well done.” – Oct 19
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“Richard conducted the ceremony beautifully, helping to ensure it captured my father’s personality, and was kind, friendly and approachable throughout which really helped us all at this difficult time. Thanks Richard”. – Sept 19
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“Richard made a difficult process much easier with his focus on my mum and who she was. It made it joyful not sad.” – funeral July 19
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“Richard exceeded our expectations and made my Dads service a true celebration of his life. We felt Richard took away all the pressures of arranging my fathers funeral. My whole family are very grateful.” – funeral July 19
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“The celebrant took the time to speak to and include comments from all family members which was important to us. He guided us through the process and ceremony with consummate ease, making us all feel safe and in good hands. I cannot thank him enough.” – Funeral July 19
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“Richard made a difficult process much easier with his focus on my mum and who she was. It made it joyful not sad”. Funeral July 19
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“Richard was excellent and caring from the first phone call to the end of the ceremony.” – funeral June 19
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“Richard was fantastic. He spent time with me a week before the funeral and we chatted about mum and her life story. He then sent me his script to read before the funeral. On the day he was caring and compassionate. He met the family and made sure we were OK. Everyone who attended mum’s funeral commented on how lovely and fitting the celebration was”. Funeral May 19
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“I had some amazing comments from people who attended. “Most beautiful service”. “Service was so appropriate and a real celebration of the deceased’s life” “Best ever funeral we’ve attended”. “So uplifting” – Funeral May 19
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“Richard’s approach was friendly and sincere. He managed the family dynamics well and provided a lovely personalised service that was exactly right for circumstances”. – funeral May 19
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“Richard did an outstanding job in conducting my father’s funeral. His tribute to the life and character of my father captured his uniqueness perfectly. It was also delivered in exactly the right manner. It was a true celebration of his life and a fitting send-off.” – Funeral May 19
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“Richard performed my brother’s funeral outstandingly. It has been a very difficult time. My brother died very young and we have quite a dysfunctional family but he handled it with extreme professionalism and provided us with laughter through a very upsetting period and gave us peace of mind. I performed a eulogy at my brothers service and Richard supported me through the whole period, and I don’t think I could of done it without him, even during the service he supported me when I became quite upset. He was extremely friendly, and I wouldn’t of thought about having a humanist ceremony before now but would definitely have it again, he has even changed my opinion on how I would have a wedding ceremony. He felt like a member of the family towards the end, and feels a shame we had to meet under such circumstances. Please know that Richard was 10/10 and our family can’t thank him enough and will be eternally grateful for his support”. – funeral April 19.
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“Richards friendly but professional attitude, helped to make our celebration relaxed and was perfect. We wanted to include a Hand Tying ceremony which Richard performed and included our four grandchildren . Richard met with us a couple of times prior to renewing our vows, which helped us get to know him and visa versa. Everyone who attended said it was very special and thought Richard was lovely. Thank you Richard.” – vow renewal April 19
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“The day was perfect from start to finish, and the ceremony was lovely thank you. Thank you, the script and presentation is perfect we will treasure it and all the lovely sentiment within it” – funeral April 19.
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“Beautiful service everybody commented.” – funeral March 19
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“From start to finish I found Richard very easy to talk to. We chatted at length about my brother and his tribute was very fitting with just the right balance of humour. On the day of the funeral he kept me calm and helped me to get through the service. Thank you so much.” – funeral Feb 19
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“Awesome, I just wish my wife was there to witness her celebration, fabulous!” – funeral Feb 19
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“The spoken words were given with a hint of humour but full of sincerity as though he was known to my mother, she would have approved” – funeral Jan 19
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“Richard was absolutely fantastic from first contact to the service. Went above and beyond our expectations and would highly recommend” – funeral Jan 19.
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“Richard made the whole experience easy, comfortable and a delight for all who attended the funeral of my husband. He ensured my family and I were totally happy with everything beforehand and I would recommend his services to anyone without hesitation.” – Dec 18
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“Richard led a beautiful celebration of my dear wife’s life. He took great care and time to learn about Michele from me and her sisters. He was utterly supportive as we planned the service and a great strength to me during it. The service was delivered beautifully and Richard’s tribute/remarks were perfectly judged. I shall be forever in Richard’s debt for enabling the service Michele planned and conducting it so well.” – Dec 18
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“Very well conducted with warmth and humour and friendliness.” – Nov 19
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“Richard spent a lot of time with us getting to know us and gathering information about our brother who had died. He was very kind and very respectful. Richard is a wonderful person” – funeral Nov 18.
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“Very friendly, approachable man who seemed to put his heart and soul into all aspects of his duties. We as a family fully appreciate Richards time and effort he took to fulfil our service needs. Many thanks to him”. – Oct 18
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“Richard was amazing and made everything easier than expected, he really was a breath of fresh air and I can’t thank him enough for what he did”. – Oct 18
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“A well balanced and well delivered funeral service done very professionally by Mr Richard Spedding, enjoyed and appreciated by all the family and friends” – Aug 18
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“Richard was very personal with my family and I. He paid attention to small details to make the day special and successful.” – Aug 18
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“All the family were very happy with the content of the service and with Richard.” – Aug 18
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“We felt the time Richard put into trying to understand our Dad was fantastic and he provided a fitting service which the whole family couldn’t fault. Excellent work!” – July 18
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“Richard did an absolutely brilliant Tribute for my husband Ken. I would recommend the service he gave to anyone”. – July 18
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“Richard came to see the family to make himself familiar with Josh and his life, which made the ceremony personal”. – July 18
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“Richard put me and my sons at ease from our first meeting. He made the day so much easier as he guided us all through it. The service was perfect, a true celebration of my husbands life . All of the comments made to us after were so complimentary.” – July 18
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“I just want say how brilliant Richard was, it was a beautiful cremation. Everybody said what a lovely gentleman Richard is.” – July 18
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“Richard provided a very professional and touching service. Many commented on how warming they felt the proceedings unfolded.” – July 18
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Richard was professional and approachable and listened to and conducted the service to our wishes. We as a family were very grateful to him for helping us put into words what our mum meant to us, can’t praise him enough. – June 18
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Really pleased by how long Richard spent with our family, getting to know about Dad, it made the funeral a real reflection of who Dad was. Attendees were blown away by how much they recognised Dad’s character from how Richard spoke about him. Richard went the extra mile and I am extraordinarily grateful to him for his kindness. – June 18
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He conducted the service with a calm assurance. It was dignified, at times light-hearted which lightened the mood and made it a celebration of Doug’s life, not his death. Prior to the service, we had two meetings, so he could get a real feel of the man, likes, dislikes, character, life and loves. Then translated it into a beautiful service. We would thoroughly recommend using Richard for there service, or just have a chat if unsure about a Humanist ceremony. – June 18
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Richard really did a fantastic job in the send-off for my mother. From the moment we met him it was a pleasure. He carefully pieced together my mum’s service and brought smiles to each and everyone on the day. Couldn’t thank him enough – May 18
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Richard was amazing, he was the perfect person to conduct my husband’s funeral, he had so much in common with us and ‘got’ us straight away. He was a great comfort in a time of deep sadness and sorrow, and I really appreciated the friendly, helpful face on the day of the funeral. It was a beautiful service. The tribute had all the emotions, from tears to laughter. It captured my husband’s character perfectly. Thank you – May 18
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Excellent reading of my dad’s life, it was uplifting and thought-provoking. There were parts that made me and others smile, and times when we cried. Even my mum who has dementia was smiling and seemed to understand in parts so for that Richard l thank you. – May 18
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Richard made the process easier, you can tell from the second you meet him that he has a passion for working with people. He is definitely in the right job!! – April 18
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Richard is a very warm and caring man, and his presentation of the ceremony was beautiful. All our family and friends were uplifted by his words – April 18
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Richard was amazing, he did a lovely reading about my mum. He was thorough and efficient and injected the right amount of humour and compassion. – April 18
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“Thank you, Richard, for a wonderful service. My dad would have really got on with you. You really took on board everything we chatted about when you came over making it a memorable experience reminiscing about my dad and all the fun memories we had. The service was a real celebration of my dad’s life exactly what he wanted. Thank you for your time and effort and your kind words. X” – April 18
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Richard was fantastic at conducting my Dad’s funeral. He was understanding and compassionate during all elements of the funeral and made my whole family feel completely at ease. The ceremony was everything we could have wanted and would have been loved by my Dad. We can’t thank him enough! – March 18
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We could not have wished for a better, more appropriate celebrant than Richard to conduct my father’s funeral. He really listened to who my Dad was and got a good sense of him across at the funeral. It was really person-centred and appropriate to the life he lived. – March 18
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Richard handled a sensitive set of family circumstances in an excellent way. – March 18
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Richard worked very well with both myself and my sister’s husband in order to get to know and understand about Nichola as best he could. In particular, he spent time and effort working with me to ensure the ceremony also met my requirements. All in all, I’m very happy. – March 18
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Richard provided an excellent service, and the attention to detail was brilliant – having spent 3 hours talking about my wife Nichola with myself and her sister it became a positive experience for something that was so sad. The whole experience from our initial meeting and post service was a pleasure which was re-enforced by all the positive feedback we got from those that attended on the day. – March 18
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Richard was brilliant. He was lovely to deal with, professional, pleasant & compassionate. He was very prompt to communicate with & answer any questions. He made sure all the details of our service were organised. I highly recommend him. He organised a lovely service for my Father at short notice as I was from overseas & due to return home & couldn’t have been more helpful. – Feb 18
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I was thoroughly impressed by Richards compassion and sensitivity. Especially with my son who had been having a hard time of it all Richard was wonderful and they found they had a lot in common which put him at ease. Many people at the service were also impressed and asked for his name. – Feb 18
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The ceremony was all we could have wished for. Richard was most professional, kind and attentive. We would not hesitate to use him again. or recommend to others. – Jan 18
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I was very pleased with the ceremony, it was a lovely service. Well done Richard. – Dec 18
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