Tens of thousands of mourners queue overnight to pay their respects to the Queen 🔴 Penny Purnell, aged over 65, said seeing the Queen lying in state drove home that she “really has gone”, adding: “That was quite hard to take.”
Lying in state: Tens of thousands queue to honour Queen at Westminster Hall as wait times reach seven hoursPeople waited patiently for hours overnight to see Her Majesty’s coffin as she lies in state at Westminster HallSeptember 15, 2022 7:44 am
The distance between the finish point and the end of the queue in Southwark Park is about five miles, but several miles of “zig-zag” systems have been set up in Southwark Park and Victoria Tower Gardens, next to Parliament, meaning the queues could stretch up to 10 miles. Some of those queuing have expressed their frustration that MPs, peers and up to four guests are being given special access at arranged times.He was standing at the foot of Her Majesty’s oak casket when he suddenly fell to the floor, according to footage on social media.The overnight crowds were great. A lot of people had turned up at 11.30pm thinking that there would be an overnight lull.
Everything fell away the moment we entered Westminster Hall, just a total silence and a hard, sharp, emotional shock. I wouldn’t describe myself as a monarchist but it’s hard to deny the significance of the moment.