Emotions high as thousands travel to London for Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral
By Jacob Phillips, Local Democracy Reporter
Hundrads of thousands of Britons yesterday travelled to central London for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
Mourners arrived at Hyde Park as early as 6.30am to pay tribute to Britain’s longest-reigning monarch.
Britons travelled from as far as Manchester and Somerset to watch the Queen’s funeral be screened at the Royal Park.
Around two million people were predicted to have travelled to central London to see the Queen’s coffin one last time in the capital before she was buried at Windsor next to her husband the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip.
The Klajnscek family were some of the first mourners to arrive at Hyde Park yesterday morning.
The group, accompanied by several friends, arrived at the famous spot just before sunrise at 6.30am, having taken the Tube from their home in Acton.
Rather than follow other mourners down The Mall, the family set up their camping chairs in Hyde Park so they could watch the whole procession be streamed.
Les Klajnscek was sitting just metres away from where he watched Princess Diana’s funeral in 1997.
The Canadian said: “There were only 30 or 40 people here when we arrived. I expected there to be a lot more. We were here before the sun came up.”
Silver Klajnscek had attended the Queen’s lying in state over the weekend after queuing for eight hours, and returned to central London to pay her respects to the Queen once more.
She said: “It was so beautiful. We met so many wonderful people along the way. The way the crown sparkles in a way you cannot see in the pictures.”
Emotions were high in Hyde Park, with many people breaking down in tears when they first saw the Queen’s coffin appear on one of the park’s large screens.
The park also sank into silence as the Queen entered Westminster Abbey for the last time, followed by King Charles III and the Queen’s other children Princess Anne, Prince Edward and Prince Andrew.
Following behind were the Queen’s grandsons, Prince William and Prince Harry.
After watching the funeral, Silver said she was touched by the two-minute silence and national anthem in Hyde Park.
She said: “People are really coming together. There is this care for the Royal Family – who have just lost a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. It’s very powerful.”
Thousands of people were forced to travel to Hyde Park as areas of central London were full by around 10am – an hour before the Queen’s funeral.
Halfway through the funeral, the park neared capacity, with the crowd being so large that many mourners were unable to see screens at Hyde Park Corner.
Brothers Chris and Mike Grice travelled from Epsom to watch the monarch’s funeral. It was the second part of 69-year-old Mike’s journey after making his way to Surrey from his home in Somerset on Sunday night.
Mike said: “I just wanted to show a bit of respect to the Queen and new King. I was here for Winston Churchill’s state funeral. We got there for 4am. I have been here for all the Jubilees – 25, 50, 70. I was born in the coronation year. It has been quite a life-changing event for me.”
Chris, 70, said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to be here. We got here just after 7am. It’s an opportunity to pay my respects to someone who has just been incredible. She has been an example to the world.”
Hyde Park broke into spontaneous applause as the Queen’s coffin was moved into a hearse as she began her final journey through west London to Windsor.
Pictured top: Christian Hartley lays flowers in Hyde Park following the death of Queen Elizabeth II (Picture: PA)