'I had dogs sing along to the Lion King theme': A day in the life of Chichester's quirkiest funeral celebrant

Karen has been working as an independent funeral celebrant for the past four years and has since carried out hundreds of funerals. Being independent, Karen has received a number of unusual requests from families saying their final goodbye to loved ones.

Speaking to Sussex World, Karen detailed some of the most interesting funeral’s she has held in the area.

"Many people ask me ‘what is a celebrant’ which is a very good question. As an independent celebrant my role is to officiate and host funeral services, by working closely with the deceased’s family or friends to create a unique and individually written service, providing a meaningful and touching tribute, to help make the best celebration and farewell ceremony as possible as well as providing an opportunity to say goodbye.

"As well as conducting the funeral itself, I am involved in planning the order of service, helping with the choice of music and writing the eulogy and providing ideas for ways to create personal touches which can be as diverse as you like, which is the beauty of choosing a celebrant!

"For one of my recent services, I received a call from a local funeral director asking how I would feel about riding on the back of an electric tandem hearse bike through the centre of Chichester to the Crematorium. As a keen cyclist of course I said yes, so the lovely late Iris Elliott aged 92 who used to ride a tandem with her late husband was able to make her final special journey on the tandem bike.

"By asking a celebrant to officiate your funeral you really can have the service of your choice, on many occasions when I visit families, they think they have to choose ‘traditional funeral music’ however this is not the case. I always ask if their loved one had a favourite type of music, artist, film or television programme and over the years I have played all types of music from classical, traditional hymns and rock and even the theme tune to Neighbours, Strictly Come Dancing and Dr Who, just to mention a few.

"It’s the same for coffin sprays, I’ve seen traditional flowers, vegetable reefs, seaweed rubber ducks, a bottle of whiskey and even 22 bananas! I’ve even had dogs singing along to the Lion King theme tune!

“I have a passion for life, and I love talking and listening to people, it’s a privilege to be invited into a home to talk about someone’s loved one, and I pride myself on gaining as much information I can on the person that has passed whether that is from their family, friends or a solicitor, as everyone has a story to be told.

"As part of my role, I am trying to reach out to the local community to encourage people to talk about the type of service they would like, and that it’s OK to talk about death. A few months ago I was invited to be the guest speaker at my local WI and the majority of the ladies had no idea what a celebrant could offer and they all said afterwards it was the most interesting and enlightening meeting they had ever had and many went away to start writing down their wishes.

"Pre-planning you service with your loved ones can be a very cathartic experience and it can help to take the pressure off your family. I want to hear your life stories, where you grew up, about your family and friends and beloved pets, your hobbies and anecdotes, your special memories and if you have any favourite music, poems or readings, and you may have even written your own poems?

"I am there from the beginning to the end to help guide, support, listen and to offer compassionate advice. I am also currently doing a Diploma Course to be A Life Coach.

"If you are interested in speaking to me, please visit my website [email protected].”