Celine Dion made her first public appearance since her husband René Angélil’s death yesterday, January 20.
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Celine Dion greets mourners at Basilica of the Notre Dame Cathedral on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Montreal, Quebec.
Angelil died on January 14 after a long battle with throat cancer just before what would have been his 74th birthday on January 16.
Meanwhile, Quebec’s Premier, Philippe Couillard, has declared the ceremony a national funeral for Montreal-born Rene, and the flag at the Quebec National Assembly will fly at half-mast on Friday.
The funeral service for Celine Dion’s late husband will be held in Montreal this afternoon.
Dion opened the proceedings to the general public on Thursday local time, with live streams of the wake and the funeral on Friday (Saturday AEST) available online.
She famously called a halt to her musical career in 1999, at the height of her sucess, upon learning that her husband had cancer – but returned to the music industry in 2002. Though she covered her face with a veil, it could be clearly seen that she was still grieving. “I have to show myself, my husband and my kids [that] I am strong and we’re OK”.
Angelil was in a band in the 1960s called Les Baronets.
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Celine will host a Celebration of Life gathering February 3 at the Colosseum in Caesars Palace, where she plans to resume her residency February 23 in keeping with the words she wrote on the card: I “have to continue without him – for him”.
