Funerals are becoming increasingly expensive. Royal London’s National Funeral Cost Index report 2020 found that the average cost of a funeral in 2020 is £3,837. A burial funeral costs more on average at £4,383, and a cremation funeral costs less on average at £3,290. London has the highest funeral costs in the UK with the average funeral now standing at an all-time high of £5,032. Northern Ireland remains the least expensive region in the UK for a funeral with the average cost being £2,962. Luckily, a life insurance pay-out can help out your loved ones with the funeral costs.
This got us thinking about funerals and burial plots… Each year, thousands of people head to their favourite celebrities’ graves to pay their respects. With this in mind, we researched the final resting places (burial plot details) for 70 icons across various industries, including art, civil rights, crime, film, health, literature, music, politics, religion, royalty, science, and sports. Read on to find out more…
Art, Civil Rights and Crime
Art
We researched 4 of the most famous artists of all time, hailing from France, Italy, and the USA:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Vincent Van Gogh | 1890 | 37 | Suicide | Auvers-sur-Oise Town Cemetery | Auvers-sur-Oise | France |
Claude Monet | 1926 | 86 | Lung cancer | Église Sainte-Radegonde de Giverny | Giverney, Normandy | France |
Michelangelo | 1564 | 88 | Illness | The Basilica di Santa Croce | Florence | Italy |
Andy Warhol | 1987 | 58 | Cardiac arrest | St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cemetery | Bethnal Park, Pennsylvania | USA |
Civil Rights
We also looked at key figures in civil rights, including Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Rosa Parks:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Mahatma Gandhi | 1948 | 78 | Assassinated | Raj Ghat | Delhi | India |
Martin Luther King, Jr. | 1968 | 39 | Assassinated | Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park | Atlanta, Georgia | USA |
Rosa Parks | 2005 | 92 | Natural causes | Woodlawn Cemetery | Detroit, Michigan | USA |
NB. Gandhi’s ashes are buried.
Crime
While heinous, those who commit crimes can become famous in their own right, including the infamous Jack the Ripper:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Jack the Ripper | 1888 | 31 | Suicide | Nunhead Cemetery | London | England |
Film
Film
Many film stars are laid to rest in Hollywood, with locations Forest Lawn Memorial Park and Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park & Mortuary located in LA, California:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Heath Ledger | 2008 | 28 | Accidental prescription drug overdose | Karrakatta Cemetery | Perth | Australia |
Grace Kelly | 1982 | 52 | Car crash | Saint Nicholas Cathedral | Monaco | Monaco |
Ingrid Bergman | 1982 | 67 | Cancer | Norra Begravningsplatsen | Stockholm | Sweden |
Audrey Hepburn | 1993 | 63 | Appendiceal cancer | Tolochenaz Cemetery | Tolochenaz | Switzerland |
Walt Disney | 1966 | 65 | Lung cancer | Forest Lawn Memorial Park | LA, California | USA |
Brittany Murphy | 2009 | 32 | Pneumonia, anaemia, and multiple drug intoxication | Forest Lawn Memorial Park | LA, California | USA |
Carrie Fisher | 2016 | 60 | Heart attack | Forest Lawn Memorial Park | LA, California | USA |
Paul Walker | 2013 | 40 | Car crash | Forest Lawn Memorial Park | LA, California | USA |
Marilyn Monroe | 1962 | 36 | Barbiturate overdose | Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park & Mortuary | LA, California | USA |
Farrah Fawcett | 2009 | 62 | Anal cancer | LA, California | USA | |
James Dean | 1955 | 24 | Car crash | Park Cemetery | Fairmount, Indiana | USA |
Bruce Lee | 1973 | 32 | Brain edema | Lake View Cemetery | Seattle, Washington | USA |
Health and Literature
Health
We also searched about pioneering icons in the health and medical fields:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Florence Nightingale | 1910 | 90 | Natural causes | St. Margaret of Antioch Churchyard | East Wellow, Test Valley Borough, Hampshire | England |
Marie Curie | 1934 | 66 | Aplastic anaemia | Panthéon | Paris | France |
Literature
We also researched some of the most revered literary icons from history:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
George Orwell | 1950 | 46 | Tuberculosis | All Saints' Church | Sutton Courtenay | England |
William Shakespeare | 1616 | 52 | Unknown | Holy Trinity Church | Stratford-upon-Avon | England |
Rudyard Kipling | 1936 | 70 | A perforated duodenal ulcer (followed by a haemorrhage in his small intestine) | Westminster Abbey | London | England |
Charles Dickens | 1870 | 58 | Stroke | Westminster Abbey | London | England |
Jane Austen | 1817 | 41 | Arsenic poisoning | Winchester Cathedral | Winchester | England |
Wilfred Owen | 1918 | 25 | Killed in action | Ors Communal Cemetery | Ors | France |
Music
Music
Many successful musicians leave behind a legacy of their musical contribution to the world, so our research included plenty of music stars, including a couple of members from the allusive ’27 club’:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Amy Winehouse | 2011 | 27 | Alcohol poisoning | Edgewarebury Cemetery | Edgeware, North London | England |
George Michael | 2016 | 53 | Heart and liver disease | Highgate Cemetery | London | England |
Bob Marley | 1981 | 36 | Melanoma skin cancer | Bob Marley Mausoleum | St. Ann's Bay | Jamaica |
Avicii | 2018 | 28 | Suicide | Skogskyrkogården | Stockholm | Sweden |
Frank Sinatra | 1998 | 82 | Heart attack | Desert Memorial Park | Cathedral City, California | USA |
Michael Jackson | 2009 | 50 | Homicide | Forest Lawn Memorial Park | LA, California | USA |
George Harrison | 2001 | 58 | Lung cancer | Hollywood Forever Cemetery | LA, California | USA |
Whitney Houston | 2012 | 48 | Accidental drowning | Fairview Cemetery | Westfield, New Jersey | USA |
Aaliyah | 2001 | 22 | Plane crash | Ferncliff Cemetery and Mausoleum | Hartsdale, Westchester, New York | USA |
Mac Miller | 2018 | 26 | Accidental overdose | The Homewood Cemetary | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | USA |
Elvis Presley | 1977 | 42 | Heart attack | Graceland, Memphis | Tennessee | USA |
Jimi Hendrix | 1970 | 27 | Drug overdose | Greenwood Memorial Park and Funeral Home | Renton, Washington | USA |
Politics, Religion and Royalty
Politics
Key political figures in both British and American history were also researched:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Winston Churchill | 1965 | 90 | Stroke | The Parish Church of Saint Martin Bladon | Bladon near Woodstock, Oxfordshire | England |
George Washington | 1799 | 67 | Epiglottitis | George Washington's Mount Vernon | Mount Vernon, Virginia | USA |
Abraham Lincoln | 1865 | 56 | Assassinated | The Lincoln Tomb, Oak Ridge Cemetery | Springfield, Illinois | USA |
Religion
The research also included important figures in Christianity:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Mother Teresa | 1997 | 87 | Cardiac arrest | The Mother House of the Missionaries of Charity | Kolkata | India |
Jesus | AD 30 or 33 | 33 | Crucifixion | The Church of the Holy Sepulchre | Jerusalem | Israel |
Royalty
The research scope also included ancient Egyptian royalty, as well as a beloved royal figure from modern day England:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Tutankhamun | 1324 BC | 19 | Unknown | Tomb of Tut Ankh Amum | New Valley Governorate | Egypt |
Princess Diana | 1997 | 23 | Car crash | Althorp Park, Althorpe Estate | Northampton | England |
Science and Sports
Science
Interestingly, many late scientists are buried at Westminster Abbey:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Stephen Hawking | 2018 | 76 | ALS | Westminster Abbey | London | England |
Charles Darwin | 1882 | 73 | Heart attack | Westminster Abbey | London | England |
Isaac Newton | 1727 | 84 | Natural causes | Westminster Abbey | London | England |
Benjamin Franklin | 1790 | 84 | Empyema | Christ Church Burial Ground | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | USA |
NB. Hawking’s ashes are buried.
Sports
Sports fans grieved the loss of several sports stars in 2020, including:
NAME | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH | GRAVE/BURIAL PLOT LOCATION | CITY / STATE | COUNTRY |
Diego Maradona | 2020 | 60 | Heart attack | Bella Vista Cemetery | Buenos Aires | Argentina |
Kobe Bryant | 2020 | 41 | Helicopter crash | Pacific View Memorial Park & Mortuary | Newport Beach, California | USA |
Muhammad Ali | 2016 | 74 | Septic shock | Cave Hill Cemetery | Louisville, Kentucky | USA |
Cremation
Cremation
Of the 70 icons that were researched, 15 were cremated instead of buried:
NAME | INDUSTRY | YEAR OF DEATH | AGE OF DEATH | CAUSE OF DEATH |
Ted Bundy | Crime | 1989 | 42 | Execution |
Sean Connery | Film | 2020 | 90 | Pneumonia |
Alan Rickman | Film | 2016 | 69 | Terminal cancer |
Marlon Brando | Film | 2004 | 80 | Respiratory failure brought on by pulmonary fibrosis |
Patrick Swayze | Film | 2009 | 57 | Pancreatic cancer |
Robin Williams | Film | 2014 | 63 | Suicide |
Prince | Music | 2016 | 57 | Accidental fentanyl overdose |
David Bowie | Music | 2016 | 69 | Liver cancer |
John Lennon | Music | 1980 | 40 | Murdered |
Kurt Cobain | Music | 1994 | 27 | Suicide |
Tupac Shakur | Music | 1996 | 25 | Murdered |
Freddie Mercury | Music | 1991 | 45 | Aids |
Margaret Thatcher | Politics | 2013 | 87 | Stroke |
Albert Einstein | Science | 1955 | 76 | Abdominal aortic aneurysm |
Sigmund Freud | Science | 1939 | 83 | Assisted suicide |
Several film stars were cremated – Marlon Brando’s ashes were scattered in multiple locations, specifically Tahiti and Death Valley, California. Swayze's ashes were scattered over his New Mexico ranch, and Robin Williams’ ashes were scattered at sea in San Francisco Bay. At the time of writing, it was revealed that Connery will be cremated in a private service on the Bahamas and some of his ashes will be returned to Scotland to be scattered when the coronavirus crisis restrictions are eased.
When it came to music icons, Prince was amongst those cremated – his remains held Paisley Park, Chanhassen, Minnesota, United States. David Bowie’s ashes were scattered in Bali. John Lennon was cremated at the Ferncliff Cemetery, and Yoko Ono scattered his ashes in Central Park, in sight of their New York apartment. Freddie Mercury’s remains were cremated, with the ashes buried in an undisclosed location by former girlfriend Mary Austin.
Margaret Thatcher’s body was cremated at Mortlake Crematorium, and her ashes were buried at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, London. American serial killer Ted Bundy was cremated in Gainesville, Florida - his ashes were scattered at an undisclosed location at Cascade Range, Washington. Albert Einstein’s cremated ashes were scattered around the grounds of the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey, USA. Lastly, Sigmund Freud Cremated at Golders Green Crematorium.
Disclaimer: Cavendish Online are not liable or responsible for the accuracy of the advice provided by third party experts, nor for the content or operation of any third-party websites, webpages, or resources which have been linked to within this article. *Information correct as of 21/12/2020
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