Crematorium worker scolds brothers for breaking social distancing rules to comfort mother at father’s funeral

‘You can’t move the chairs, you were told,’ employee says

Footage has emerged of two brothers being told to socially distance from their mother during their father’s funeral.

Craig and Paul Bicknell can be seen moving their chairs to be near their grieving mother at the start of the service at Crownhill Crematorium for their father, Alan Wright.

The chairs had been placed at socially distanced intervals but Craig decided to comfort his mum, with his brother following suit.

A crematorium employee then walks over to the family and tells them to put the chairs back.

“Sorry, sorry. You’re going to have to put the chairs back, I’m afraid,” he says. “You can’t move the chairs, you were told.”

Craig Bicknell told the BBC the incident left him feeling “angry and upset”.

“I made everyone aware that I [would] need to comfort my mum at some point,” he said.

"When I saw my mum break as she did, it just took over that I had to comfort her and put my arm around her."

He said the confrontation “totally ruined the day” and he still had to deliver his eulogy.

He added: "It was very hard to do. I needed the service to carry on for my dad. It was a really scary feeling, I've never felt [it] before."

Milton Keynes Council, which runs the building, apologised for the situation.

A spokesperson told the BBC: "We are sorry to have upset this family.

"We don't usually step in if a guest needs to be comforted by another family member and in this instance should have taken a more considered approach.

"We ask funeral directors to let us know whether any chairs should be grouped in advance, and from now on this includes guests who are in the same household or bubbles, as well as people who need extra support."