On Sunday 18th September I travelled to London with Tracy to show our respects to and bid farewell to a most remarkable woman... most remarkable Monarch... Queen Elizabeth 2nd... at her State Funeral the following day. A day on which we shared Iin history... a day never to be forgotten.
I typed up these nots on the following day, Tuesday September 20th:: 2022:
It was Thursday 8th September, 2022. I was due to go to a gig by Sykes Martin that evening, but that had been cancelled… so after meeting Lynne for a coffee in the morning I went home to listen to the first day of the 3rd Test Match between England and South Africa.
It was raining there of course so I went up and did some work on my model railway… I had the radio on hoping for some play but no chance… and the news was mainly from Balmoral where the Queen was not in the best of health… as the afternoon wore on it was becoming clear that the family were gathering there to be with her… it was looking ominous…
I finished the job on the railway and went down to put the news on the TV… it was not good news… and gradually it became clear that the news reporters were now wearing black coats over their normal clothing… this could only mean one thing…
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I had a series of calls and text exchanges with Liz… the reports were growing more sombre until the screen went black and came back with a black border and an image of Hugh Edwards in black tie and the emotion in his eyes unmistakabe… he made the announcement that was so inevitable… Her Majesty had passed away peacefully surrounded by her family… Hugh continued with his report magnificently, his voice cracking and catching as he struggled to keep in control… which he did…. Just.
I know the news broadcasters rehearse this speech at least annually but a rehearsal is nothing like doing it for real… and he made a wonderful job of delivering the world rocking news with dignity and compassion.,
I phoned Liz… said “She’s gone… it’s over”… not much more was said. As I put the phone down my tears were flowing…. Next phone call was a few minutes later… Liz asked if I was going to go…. I hummed and has’ed… I wasn’t sure.
I then got a message from Tracey… “are you still going”… I answered instantly “Yes” and we agreed we’d go together….
Liz phoned again a few minutes later, and said something like “Of course you are going aren’t you”… .Yes… of course!!
The evening wore on…. Quiet, reflective… I can’t remember what I did, but I didn’t much want to talk to anyone or follow social media… but did have a couple more chats with Liz…
She asked me if I was sure about going… I confirmed I was, I have done these events before… she responded “Yes but you weren’t’t a pensioner then”!!! True… but thank you for that!!!
Not much happened for a while, I went to see a Who tribute band, called Who’s Who, at the Musician next evening… there was some question whether gigs should go ahead, but go ahead it did… as I believe it should… Gary the vocalist spoke before they started… said, and I totally agree, that given the solemnity of the news we all need something to raise spirits and that I believe Her Majesty would want things to carry on… he raised a hand and paid tribute to her…. The band crashed into. “I can’t explain” and so started a fuel injected 2 hours of Who classics…
There was speculation that the funeral would be on the Monday, 19th September, and that the Queen would lay it state in Westminster Hall…but for me nothing much happened apart from watching the various stages of the journey from Balmoral to Buckingham Palace and on to Westminster Hall… the story became the queue of people to see he coffin…. At times stetching up to 7 or 8 miles and queuing times in excess of 24 hours…
I saw the announcement of the funeral date while I was out… messaged Tracey with the details and asked if she could book a coach… minutes later she was back to confirm a coach at 7.00pm on the Sunday and return 7.00pm after the days events. Perfect…
So… having agreed timings, and agreed we needed to be on the Mall… I arranged to meet up to pay her for the tickets and have a couple of beers next day… which we did!
The week continued… after a delightful afternoon with Rob and the Vols on the Saturday, the Sunday arrived.
I met Rob at the Football Stadium… we were going the the Vixens opening game, home to Spurs Ladies… The teams came out… went through the routine footballing rituals then gathered for a minutes silence… which was immaculately observe in the stadium… followed by the rousing singing “God Save the King”… a hugely emotional and wonderful start to the afternoon… The teams then took the knee to great applause and the game went ahead… after an hour or so all eyes were on the time… 68 minutes… 69 minutes.. 70 minutes… the crowd rose as one and applauded for her Majesty… a moving tribute again beautifully observed by all…
What of the game… Vixens were unlucky to lose 2-1… they were the better team especially in the second half… but it is really immaterial…
From the ground a slow walk into town…and wait at the coach Station for Tracey.
The journey down was uneventful… at least it was until Golders Green… we chatted happily of shoes and ships and ceiling wax… occasionally touching on the day to come. We had been told that at the buses were terminating at Wembley because of congestion in Central London… however… the reality was that the buses were indeed going into Victoria… hopefully good news.
We got to Golders Green, it was then that things changed… a National Express guy came on, explained to the driver that he would have to follow a diversion via Battersea Bridge and Vauxhall Bridge to Victoria because of road closures,
Sadly, shortly it became clear he had no idea of the route…. Was getting lost!… and then… two ghastly women at the front took charge… of sorts… they had sat navs… and voices to make a raven sound like a choirboy… harshly barking out the directions without having a clue what they were talking about… sadly their sat navs didn’t agree… they got more and more aggressive… annoying and downright rude… a hideous pair… and those finger nails!!!… ye gods…
Eventually, in sight of Vauxhall Bridge the driver announced that he was out of driving time so he would have to drop us and take a break… so we all had to get off about 100 years from Vauxhall Bridge…
We set off to walk, basically along the river and reached Westminster Bridge easily, having past the queue for the Laying in State at several points. From Westminster Bridge it should have been a short easy walk to St James Park and the Mall… but no… crowd control teams, the army and police were out in force randomly stopping people for several minutes here there and everywhere… and most of the roads were blocked off… so it became a long and winding road tot he Mall… we got there around 11.00, found a place and settled down… not on the rails, but only just behind…
We chatted easily for a while… and chatted with those around… we had just 12 hours to wait until the funeral service… it would pass swiftly…
We spent the night chatting… an occasional walk along the park to keep the legs working… an occasional trip to the toilet… and a single coffee… we actually at and drank very little…a couple of spells laying and maybe 20 minutes sleep all told…
The Park and the Mall are normally bustling with life, activity and noise, but although there must have been 100’s of thousands there over night it was so quiet… so peaceful… so respectful… just a gentle buzz of quiet conversation… and every emotion… love, respect, sorrow… clearly felt everywhere… emotions so clear that you could reach out and hold them…
The night progressed… very little to comment on really… it was just a blissful peaceful night, the atmosphere was wonderful… warm and peaceful…. It did get a bit chilly around 3.30 am… but it didn’t last and it remained as very mild night… whether because of the weather or because of the love and warmth generated by the crowd is impossible to say…
The night flew by… the authorities were closing off areas to maintain crowd control… and to be clear, this was not to control the behaviour of the crowd, but to prevent areas becoming overcrowded or uncomfortable… and the security was immaculate thought the night and day….
By around 6.00 am the public address was asking people to pack away the tents and allow space for folk to move forward and let others come in… and for the most part everyone complied… and we were close to the railings… The police came along and lined the Mall on crowd control…. Clearly they we to be the crowd security, there was no sign of the Brigade of Guards who so often line the ceremonial routes
As always the Police did a great job… banter between the Police and crowd… a lot of fun… there were constant lines of officers marching too and fro… we were thinking they went along the Mall, then behind the scenes, then nip back to the beginning then down in public view again… and each column of officers was warmly applauded.
The Officer nearest us was from the Norfolk Force… a bearded smiling officer who was clearly relishing his role… when he was relieved and sent off for his break the crowd was calling “enjoy your tea”… and he smiled as he marched off… and he was greeted with rapturous applause when he returned.
The Police on duty were clearly unarmed… but there were conspicuous Police marksmen on the balconies opposite and I am sure elsewhere… despite the troubled times we live in, there was never a fear, in the crowd, of any atrocity… it was clear that the authorities had it covered and perhaps that contributed to the warmth and serenity of the atmosphere.
As time moved on we were realising that we were making history… this day was significant world wide and once again our country was in the full glare of internationally publicity… and boy did it show beautifully even now.
Time moved on… somewhere after 1030 Police motorcycle outriders came down the Mall followed by a line of limousines…. The reflections from the glorious sun on the darker windows made it difficult to see who was in the cars, but Prince George and Princess Chariotte were both clearly seen… after this motorcade I though this is my chance to nip to the toilet before things start to happen… as I was quietly in the loo there was an almighty cheer went up… I thought oh no… I’ve missed something…
When I got back to my place I learned that a car carrying the King had gone by and he was clearly seen and acknowledging the crowd… bad timing…
However….from where we were we could just hear the commands of the officers in control of the troops… and the news came that the coffin was on the gun carriage and heading for the Abbey…. There was perceptible change in the atmosphere… it remained warm and peaceful… but now the anticipation was reaching a peak… we knew we were so close now to the start of the funeral…
The minutes flew by and we were hearing the description of Her Majesty’s coffin being taken from the gun carriage and being carried into the Abbey….
The service stared with the choir singing “I am the resurrection”…. The performance was absolutely exquisite… beautiful and the tears many of us had felt close started to fall as the singing filled the air….simply magnificent… the choir was incredible… so moving… emotional… if this wasn’t moving you you must have been dead…
The service continued… running like clockwork without a hitch… between prayers… eulogies from religious leaders, hymns… each one perfectly delivered… and the music… the choirs… stunning.
During the service a guards band came along the Mall… solemn music with muffled drums beating out a time… the band was followed by a troop of guardsmen on foot…. They took their places lining the Mall… the police facing the crowd… the guards facing into the Mall… the Officer barked out his orders, which were followed by Police and Guardsman alike… and when he was happy everything was perfect came a moment I will not forget… a simple gesture… he had his arm at 90 degrees with the sword pointing upwards… he slowly lowered the sword to the horizontal and then slowly dipped it down… tip on the floor and bowed his head to lean on it… and so he stood for an age until time to for the next action - such an apparently small gesture… but a gesture so packed with significance and meaning it went to the heart…
And don’t underestimate the strength of mind and body it takes to make this gesture…
So now we have the Police, no longer laughing and joking with the crowd, facing the crowd… a detachment of Guards still as stone facing across the Mall… the mood is solemn… respectful… it is silent apart from the distant barks of the officers ordering their troops… the service continued…. Solemn and formal… but so uplifting… the mood judged perfectly by those speaking and the music… the hymns… simply incredible… surely choirs have seldom sung better than this… truly inspiring… beautiful… those in the Abbey sang the hymns… but there was no singing on the Mall… everyone was wrapt in attention to everything happening..
And what of my feelings now… I had shed tears as the first “I am the Resurrection” rang out… and emotion that had been building for some hours and the beauty and purity of the singing broke the dam.
There is no movement now on the Mall… the Guards are ramrod straight though at ease… the Police are stock still.. facing the crowds… but I don’t think seeing much… the emotion and strain is etched clearly on their faces… our smiling bearded officer looks serious… he blinks repeatedly… this must be an incredibly hard duty for the Officers, but they carry it out to perfection… you see the emotions, the sorrow, the strain also mixed with pride in being honoured to carry out this duty.
Suddenly a slight disturbance… an officer across the Mall goes down… he is on the sunny side… it was hot there… and he had been there for a long time… happily he had only fainted, nothing more serious.. Colleagues ran to aid him… someone in the crowd ran to him with a bottle of water and after a minute or two his colleagues were able to help him to his feet and helped him walk back to the shade and the rest area… the crowd applauded him, releived and happy to see him back on his feet and walking under his own steam… imperceptibly during this moment other officers had moved in to replace their colleagues… and left no gaps.
Through the afternoon I saw another officer go down… exactly the same response… and I suspect there were more…
The service was scheduled to last minutes under an hour… we were all aware that time was moving and that we were nearing the end of it… it had been absolutely wonderful… there was sorrow… optimism… every moment struck the hearts of everyone there… the music was sublime….
What was the atmosphere on the Mall like… don’t ask… you had to be there… you really had to be there… I think everyone was feeling some of the most powerful emotions of their lives… wherever you looked… there were people looking sorrowful… but the mood was never downcast… there was sorrow for sure… but we were also there to celebrate the wonderful life and reign of the most magnificent Monarch… wife… mother… grandmother… great grandmother… we were thanking her for her impeccable service but no-one was forgetting that she carried those other roles out to the full…
Eventually it came to a time for reflection… Reveille…Last Post… and the two minutes silence… you will never hear anything as loud as the sound of the tens of thousands on The Mall making not a whisper of sound through that period… the silence was held impeccably… the stillness and calm was simply breathtaking and there were tears… yes of course there were tears… and there was love… respect… humility everywhere… I don’t think anyone who stood there for that two minutes will ever forget it… as the silence ended, the fanfare and the National Anthem… The choirs, the congregation in the Abbey… the thousands on the Mall sang “God Save the King” and meant every damn word of it… I won’t say the singing on the Mall was perfect… you could hear voices cracking and breaking throughout… but it was a truly monumental moment… if you weren’t moved to the extreme you must have been dead…
Then at the end… the Piper… oh my my… the piper played his lament… and it was glorious… and we knew that during the playing he would slowly walk backwards away from his post… the sound fading to nothing… and that is exactly what happened… the sound faded to the most profound silence… simple… respectful…. Beautiful…
As the service ended the commentator on the public address system described what was happening… the coffin was being transferred from the catafalque to the shoulders of the eight young men honoured to be pall bearers… and let us pause here to show those eight lads the ultimate respect and admiration… such a proud moment in their lives… but so few men have ever had such a honourable yet onerous duty… the responsibility of shouldering her Majesty’s coffin from catafalque to gun carriage under the glare of billions of people world wide… the pressure was colossal… but they carried it out without a murmur… perfectly… I believe an example of true greatness… and these guards, when you saw a picture of them, were barely more than boys… gentlemen… I admire you all.
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We were hearing the Military Officers barking their orders… organising what was to be a mighty parade… indeed the parade was actually longer than the route…
Anticipation was now replacing the tears and that had dominated the preceding hour as we awaited the parade… looking towards Horse Guards Road… we could see mounted guards with the plumed helms sitting one the sides of the road… the band we had seen arrive earlier were still standing to attention by the side of the road and the Officer opposite maintained his posture of head down to his grounded sword…
Then without an obvious signal he was barking his drill commands to his troops… attention… shoulder arms… present arms and the rest.. ending with reverse arms… .then a buzz… almost imperceptible… but a buzz… and we saw the beginning of the Parade… It wasn’t clear at first who was leading… but behind the mounted police outrides rode a group of Royal Canadian Mounted Police in their scarlet tunics… things were happening quickly… they were followed by a couple more military bands from around the Commonwealth… then some dignitaries walking in the parade… lamentably I can’t name a single one…
These were followed by a group in various uniforms… led by an officer in a kilt.. and then a company of Anzacs… no-one knew who was in the parade… what sequence they would come in… and every minute there was a new spectacle to admire and gasp at… then another military band in unrecognised uniforms… then the Royal Airforce… the Marines… then another marching band… all with muffled drum sounding the pace… and if you haven’t heard that, seen that.. then you will never understand just how powerful it is… so powerful… so poignant…
Then a battalion from, I think, the Far East followed by a kilted and magnificent Scottish regiment… then the guards led by the magnificently dressed standard bearers… all the standards and batons are draped in black… so simple… so powerful…
More regiments march proudly past, including our own Royal Navy… more individuals all in various military uniform… all looking sombre and proud in their uniforms.,,, then a slight gap… and the magnificent Blues and Royals on their gleaming black horses appear… the guards sitting tall and proud, their red plumes gleaming in the sunlight… they are followed by the Royal Household Cavalry Drummers on their superb shire stallions… always a highlight in a parade…
They are followed by more regiments, then some more individuals walking in the parade... and we recognise Black Rod amongst them… some very senior looking officers in full dress uniform… some ladies dressed in deep black… behind then we see more Household Cavalry approaching but somehow something magical happens… we haven’t seen it yet… but everyone senses because everyone can feel Her Majesty’s coffin…
Then we see the sailors pulling the gun carriage and catch a first glimpse of the coffin… totally awe-inspiring… a moment where sorrow and tears fight with pride and admiration for ascendency… which won? Call it a draw.
As it draws closer we see the coffin… the flowers… the crown… the gun carriage is pulled by the sailors… flanked by Household Canary Guards Officers and Yeoman Wardens of the Tower… Beefeaters… the impact of this spectacle is breathtaking… you can’t look away… stunned and again both sorrow and pride mingle
Before you can catch your breath and realise what is happening His Majesty and the Royal Family are walking past… a guardsman shouts “God Save the King and the tears, never far away, roll again… following this another company of Royal Household Cavalry pass… and it is over… we are all stunned… this has been something far way and above anything we had dreamed of… on this day, as in the preceding 10 days… London has done her Majesty proud… as she has us for 70 years… we will not see her like again…
I feel privileged and honoured that I was able to be, in small part, a part of this historical day… and had the chance to say Farewell to an incredibly special woman… an incredibly special monarch…
I can only finish this section by saying this… .thank you for everything you did for us Ma’am…. And God Save the King…
With what we have seen in these ten days… and from the reception he has received from the crowds…. It is clear that the Monarchy is in good hands with His Majesty King Charles the Third… though heavens above…. What big shoes he has to fill….
Our game plan was always clear… after the parade… head for a beer!… we knew we wouldn’t be eating or drinking much for the previous 24 hours… so were looking for a treat…
So, after bidding farewell to those we had shared the day with, we walked to a grassy spot on the park and sat down… I say sat down… collapsed onto it… we gave it some time to recover our sensibilities and restore the use to our legs and backs… eventually we rose, with a struggle, and joined the throng heading away… and at this point the only black mark on the day… the crowds were funnelled into 2 or 3 narrow paths which led to human traffic jams, and some frustration…. However, not to dwell on that…
We finally got off the park and the crowd control measures took us, I estimate, around a mile away from Victoria… but joy of joys… when the barriers ran out, we found ourselves outside a pub… a rather nice one!.
In we went… it was rammed and taking for ever to get served… it seemed prudent to get a couple of rounds in immediately… we kinds perched on a window sill at a table with another few folk who were chatting….
The first pint barely touched the sides… down it went… not quite in one!!… and the second one was started… by now we were chatting happily with the other folk at the table… and others had joined… there was a lass from Leicestershire, a couple of Cockneys… a ”Hoorah Henry” and a woman from Boston, USA… I think… the craic was wonderful… much laughter and banter…
Tracey set off for another drink, and slid nonchalantly under the table and out to avoid moving anyone… that got a cheer… and we had two more pints apiece
These lasted a bit longer… we were still high from the events of the day, loving the party we had become part of… and of course the beer!…
We had to be back at Wembley to catch the bus home at 7.00pm… and we had no idea how to get there or where the bus station might be… or indeed where we were… so we had to take our leave… we both left by ducking under the table and shook hands with or hugged our new friends and wished them well… and out into the evening to find our way… hazily I admit… home…
We wandered… it wasn’t necessarily easy walking… and found an underground station… we asked how to get to Wembley… and the guy said which line to take… and one stop to Green Park then Jubilee line straight to Wembley….sounded easy… we headed to the platform…. Wrong platform, wrong line…. Went back and headed for the right line… boarded the train… wrong direction… got off and went back… this time got the right train to Green Park.. .and from there without mishap onto the train to Wembley.
When we got out of the station we again realised we didn’t know where the bus station is… so asked someone who looked official… he said go to the Stadium, and the bus station is the Green Car Park on the left…
We made our way along Wembley Way and met several other bemused people who couldn’t find the bus station… However… we chose to go into Starbucks for a Coffee and toilet… we had plenty of time… so we sat and luxuriated with the coffee and chatted… I suddenly looked at my phone… don’t know what prompted it… and was aghast to see it was 1856!! We had four minutes to find our coach, and still didn’t know where the bus station was… we went as quickly as possible… asked a bus man at the stadium… he pointed us to the bus station…. Except he sent us to the very far end…. Then we had to speed all the way back tot he near end… and somehow managed to get the bus…
The journey home was uneventful… but very enjoyable… we were able to thrill to what had been a wonderful experience shared in such good company… and celebrate that we had got home without calamity or mishap….
A day I will treasure… for the spectacle… the experience… and the company…
