A Good Send Off for the King

I wasn't able to go to the funeral, but I did see people gathering in Castle Street for the procession up to Cusop Church. There was even a minibus laid on for people who couldn't walk that far.
One of the people who did go told me that there were about 200 people outside the church. Local novelist Phil Rickman said a few words at the service.

After the funeral, local people gathered at the Globe to pay tribute to the King.
When I got there Goffee was making a speech about his memories of Richard, and how he had given licence to the eccentric and mad things that happened in Hay - like Hay-on-Fire, for instance, or the unicycle races around the Castle outskirts. Goffee organised Hay-on-Fire, and also held circus workshops over the years.
Projected on the wall during the proceedings were photos of Richard at various moments in his life. The poster at the doorway had a picture of the King, with the words "...total chaos and anarchy is the only answer..."
Goffee then handed the mic over to Oliver, who said he had been designated Crown Prince by Richard, but knew that he could never fill Richard's shoes. However, he did want to make sure that Richard's legacy of making Hay such an eccentric and fun place to be was continued. To this end, he was setting up a new Cabinet along with the Admiral of the Hay Navy, who also said a few words.
He also read out a tribute from Hay's Twin Town of Timbuktu, which was very touching.
They have set up a Facebook page where people can share their stories about Richard.
They also tried to track down some of Richard's friends from the early days, but had been unable to contact Boots Bantock the poet (last heard of in Bath). When they phoned April Ashley, her first words were "I'm not going." But she is planning to return to Hay soon.
Oliver recounted a story about Richard, from his father, who had accompanied Richard to the USA in the late 1970s, where they had met with the management team of one of the biggest antiquarian booksellers there - they'd handled Gutenberg Bibles! Richard was taken out for a slap up meal, and at the end of it said that he would return the favour the following night.
When they got back to the motel, Oliver's father told Richard that just the tip for the evening had come to $600. Richard's immediate response was to look for an early flight back to the UK! When he couldn't get a flight, he proposed only taking the chairman out for dinner - and suggested a little known gem of a place to eat. It was an Indian takeaway, and they ate the meal from the plastic containers, with the plastic cutlery, in the back of the chairman's stretch limo.
Oliver then offered the mic to anyone else in the room who had stories to tell about Richard, and that's still going on now.

The King is Dead - Long Live Hay-on-Wye!