Glenn Webbe transitions to funeral celebrant role
Glenn Webbe, one of the first black players to represent Wales at rugby, has embarked on an unexpected new profession as a funeral celebrant after spending more than two decades in the interior design industry, reports BritPanorama.
The 63-year-old former Bridgend winger has launched his own venture, Cradle to Grave Celebrations, following a turbulent period marked by the collapse of his business during the pandemic. Personal tragedy compounded his professional difficulties when his father passed away, and his marriage of over 30 years subsequently ended.
“It seemed like I had reached a fork in the road,” Webbe explained, per WalesOnline. “I got to the point where I decided I was just going to start doing things.” He completed training with the academy of professional celebrants and now officiates at both weddings and funerals, though memorial services remain his primary focus.
Two pivotal encounters with dying friends shaped Webbe’s choice to pursue this path. He recounts a moment of hesitation when he avoided a friend with terminal cancer in a supermarket, uncertain about how to approach him. “He passed away a couple of weeks after that and I just felt awful,” Webbe admitted. “I had made it about me.” This regret motivated him to visit Gordon Pritchard, the former Caerphilly director of rugby, during Pritchard’s final days in hospital.
Pritchard died four days later, leaving Webbe with a message that continues to bring him joy. “It made me think I wanted to do something to help people deal with loss and grief and to celebrate the lives of their loved ones,” he said. Webbe arranges family meetings before each service, describing how conversations shift from sorrow to happiness as relatives share forgotten memories.
“The good times outweigh the bad times,” he observed. “You are celebrating a life. You stitch it all together from speaking to friends and family to get the real rounded picture of the person.” Each service is tailored to individual wishes, from selecting hymns to encouraging mourners to wear colours rather than black.
The former winger also offers Living Wakes for terminally ill people who have accepted their prognosis. “It’s the closest thing to attending your own funeral,” he explained. “It’s to celebrate their lives while they are still here with us.” Webbe’s personal understanding of grief also informs his work.
When his mother died in 2011, he felt unexpectedly numb, only to be overwhelmed with emotion six months later. “The grief came pouring out. I had been on automatic pilot up to then,” he said. “I wanted to do something to make it okay to grieve.”
Throughout his playing career and beyond, Webbe struggled with anxiety, often using humour to mask his insecurities. For years, he declined speaking invitations, deflecting requests to figures like Jonathan Davies. A breakthrough came at a Q&A event when he realised that audiences simply wanted his story, not comparisons to other speakers. “I have basically changed my nerves to excitement,” he said. “That’s what gives me the courage to do it.”
Webbe’s journey illustrates a remarkable evolution from sport to service, reflecting how individuals can reinvent themselves in the face of adversity. In the end, his commitment to honouring lives and helping others navigate grief serves as a poignant reminder of the human capacity to connect and heal.
