'Friendship did not follow party lines': Mourners gather to pay tribute to Ann Widdecombe
The former MP "liked you better once you had survived a vigorous debate with her" and "laughed at every new jibe"
Ann Widdecombe made friendships across the political divide and "laughed at every new jibe", as 100 mourners paid their respects to the former MP.
Listen to this article
On Wednesday, Ann Widdecombe's friends and family gathered at the Buckfast Abbey in Devon to pay their respects to the former MP, who was killed in her home alone last month.
She died on July 8 after she was hit over the head with a hammer 21 times at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor, Devon.
The requiem mass - a Catholic service where prayers are offered for the soul of the dead - started at 2pm and lasted around 90 minutes.
Police officers and sniffer dogs patrolled outside the church and carried out security checks ahead of the service.
The Rt Rev David Charlesworth, Abbot of Buckfast, read the homily in which he praised the former MP's "fearless" Catholic faith and her many friendships extending beyond the political divide.
Quoting from a previous tribute, he said: “Friendship did not follow party lines,... Indeed she liked you better once you had survived a vigorous debate with her ... In her long career in the public eye, Ann was more lampooned, insulted and sniggered at than almost any other politician, certainly any male politician.
"She was called many cruel names, … but she not only turned the other cheek, she laughed at every new jibe.” In this regard, Ann took Christ as her model."
The former MP turned Reform spokeswoman "fearlessly upheld the moral and social teachings of the Catholic Church" he said.
"Her voice regarding these issues certainly upset some. We have not been told the reasons for her murder, but in past centuries, and elsewhere in the world today men and women pay with their lives for holding fast to the Christian faith.
"In the midst of the shock, clamour and sometimes unwarranted comment surrounding her death, our response is to pray for the repose of her soul, to give thanks for her fortitude, and offer Holy Mass in this Abbey Church which Ann called her safe haven."
A statement from the abbey ahead of the service said Miss Widdecombe would be “missed and fondly remembered” and “many in our worshipping community knew her as a kind and warm character”.
“Ann was a woman of profound faith, a faith which found expression in the public forum of politics,” the statement said.
“Ann was unafraid to express her unwavering convictions, formed through her Roman Catholic faith. She had a sharp intellect and was a dedicated public servant."
She died on July 8 after she was hit over the head with a hammer 21 timesat her home in Haytor on Dartmoor, Devon.
Joshua Kerry, 28, of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, was charged with her murder on July 20.
Several of Miss Widdecombe's former political colleagues were seen arriving at the service, including the shadow chancellor Mel Stride and former justice minister Crispin Blunt.
LBC's Iain Dale also drove through the night down from Edinburgh to attend the service.
The broadcaster has paid tribute on LBC's website to his friend of 29 years, writing that he hopes to meet the former MP in heaven one day.
It is understood that Nigel Farage did not attend the funeral because he did not want to become a distraction, the Guardian reports.
The order of service for the requiem mass showed tributes were paid by the Rev Roger Widdecombe, Miss Widdecombe’s nephew, and Sir Christian Sweeting, a close friend.
Donations made in memory of Miss Widdecombe will be divided between the Leprosy Mission and Abound, supporting the projects of the Christian Endeavour Hostel in India.
A public memorial for Miss Widdecombe will be held later this year.
Miss Widdecombe was first elected as a Conservative MP in Kent in 1987, served as a prisons minister in the 1990s, and later became an MEP for the Brexit Party.
At the time of her death, she was a spokeswoman on immigration and justice for Reform UK.
She also found fame outside politics on Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother.