The Reverend Richard Coles says a hate letter sent to him after the death of his partner is now being investigated by police.

• Richard Coles (@revrichardcoles) / Twitter
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• Rev Richard Coles

Biography for Reverend Richard Coles – a Church of England priest in the English village of Finedon, Northamptonshire, where two of his ancestors were Vicars in the seventeenth century. However, in complete contrast, more than a quarter of a century ago Richard was the instrumentalist half of pop band The Communards. The latest tweets from @RevRichardColes.

The former Communards singer announced that his civil partner and fellow priest the Reverend David Coles had died earlier this week, following a long illness.

A letter, courageously unsigned, begins: “Dear Mr Coles, I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am to hear of the death of your partner...”

— Richard Coles (@RevRichardColes) December 19, 2019

Coles described the mail in a Twitter post, writing: 'A letter, courageously unsigned, begins: 'Dear Mr Coles, I can't begin to tell you how happy I am to hear of the death of your partner...'.'

'It continues 'I have been praying for your pain for a long time now...'.'

As well as the letter, Coles also said he has received messages from a small percentage of fellow Christians telling him his partner is 'in hell' and he will 'follow'.

The ex-Strictly Come Dancing contestant confirmed that officers are now investigating the messages, writing: 'Police called this evening, sympathetic and professional, and my hateful correspondence is now evidence.'

He added: 'Also Northamptonshire Police lit a candle in memory of Rev David Coles at their carol service tonight. There appears to be evidence of something in my eye.'

I’m very sorry to say that @RevDavidColes has died. He had been ill for a while. Thanks to the brilliant teams who looked after him at @KettGeneral. Funeral details to follow. “The Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended”. pic.twitter.com/usvLDIBDv7

— Richard Coles (@RevRichardColes) December 17, 2019

Richard Coles (@revrichardcoles) / Twitter

The 57-year-old described the shock of being the target of trolls, as 'like the Khmer Rouge suddenly popping up in a stream of condolence'.

In an earlier post from Coles, in which he shared a photo of them wearing clerical cassocks and collars, he thanked the 'brilliant teams' at Kettering General Hospital for their care.

Along with the image, he shared a biblical quote from Isaiah 60:20: 'The Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.'

Fans were quick to offer their sympathy, and Coles says strangers have contacted him to offer support.

He also says he is not letting the negative correspondence get him down: 'The horrible letters: they don't touch me.

'I am right now an expert in pain, the real kind, and these are paper darts among the incoming, and just leave me mildly curious about the state of mind of the writer.'

An image of a glass pot of green ink accompanied the post, in reference to the journalistic term 'green ink brigade', describing letters sent to news organisations expressing eccentric opinions.

He also warned followers that a fake crowdfunding page had been set up in his mother's name.

Coles was formerly a member of Bronski Beat before forming The Communards with Jimmy Somerville in 1984.

He came to the Christian faith in the early 90s, studying theology before training as a priest in the Church of England. He was ordained in 2005.

On his official website, Coles says he met David two years later following a sermon, living together at their vicarage following their civil partnership, along with their pet dachshunds.

Coles has previously spoken openly about their celibacy, telling Christian Today: 'Of course it has its challenges and sacrifices...

'We live in good standing with the teaching of the Church, but I wouldn't wish that to imply that I saw that as a good and noble thing, because I don't, but it is currently where we are.'

The Reverend Richard Coles is a Church of England priest in the quintessentially English village of Finedon, Northamptonshire, where two of his ancestors were Vicars in the seventeenth century. However, in complete contrast, more than a quarter of a century ago Richard was the instrumentalist half of pop band The Communards, together with Jimmy Somerville.

During the 1980s The Communards had three UK Top 10 hits, including Never Can Say Goodbye and the biggest-selling single of 1986, Don’t Leave Me This Way.

Born in March 1962, the young Richard Coles grew up in Northamptonshire and attended Wellingborough public school where he was a chorister and, to his horror, realised he was gay. In his late teens – partly due to being homosexual in an extremely hostile time during the Seventies, where life seemed to offer only disgrace – Richard took a drug overdose and ended up in a psychiatric hospital.

He subsequently moved to London to work as a session musician in theatre. In 1983, Richard joined pop group Bronski Beat as a sax player where he met Jimmy Somerville. The following year, Jimmy and Richard left to form The Communards.

Success came fast and they had the UK’s biggest-selling single of 1986, but Richard was ill at ease with the sudden fame. He was the gawky, bespectacled, musically trained geek who physically towered over the extrovert Somerville, but was otherwise lost in his friend’s shadow.

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Friction grew, and it was against this backdrop of drug-fuelled arguments that Richard invented a deception which ultimately drove him away from his career in pop music and towards a more fulfilling vocation to God. They split in 1988; Jimmy embarking on a solo career, whilst Richard started writing for the Times Literary Supplement and Catholic Herald.

In 1990, after attending a mass at St Alban’s, Richard Coles was suddenly inspired with a new found faith. Between 1990-1994 he studied for a theology degree at King’s College, London, before returning to Northamptonshire where he began to seriously consider taking holy orders.

After a 10-year period as a Roman Catholic, Richard returned to Anglicanism in 2001 and then in 2005 was ordained into the Anglican priesthood. Following ordination he spent time as a curate at St Botolph’s Church in Boston, Lincolnshire and then at St Paul’s Church, Knightsbridge.

He was awarded an MA by research from the University of Leeds in 2005 for work on the Greek text of the Epistle to the Ephesians.

Reverend Richard Coles is co-presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live and is regularly seen as a guest panelist on shows such as Would I Lie To You?, Have I Got News For You and QI. Often described as Britain’s most famous vicar, Richard was the inspiration for the main character in the BBC hit comedy Rev, a programme for which he also served as consultant. In the summer of 2016 he indulged a passion for fine cuisine by taking part in the BBC’s prime-time programme Celebrity Masterchef. In 2017 Richard returned to our screens co-hosting BBC’s The Big Painting Challenge, alongside Mariella Frostrup. In August 2017 he was the fifth celebrity announced for the line-up of Strictly Come Dancing. He was partnered with Australian dancer, Dianne Buswell. Richard exited the show on week two of the vote-off.

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Richard Coles’ work in the media and unique position as the only Vicar to have had a number one hit record, makes him a popular speaker on the after-dinner circuit, regaling many extraordinary and humorous tales of his journey from popstar to priest.

Rev Richard Coles

With a particular interest in housing and communities, for six years Richard served as a Board Member of Greatwell Homes, providing social and affordable housing in the borough where he lives. In September 2017 Richard stepped down from the Board to become their Patron. He is also Chancellor of the University of Northampton.