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Queen pays tribute to her mother The Queen has made a personal broadcast to the nation to thank the public for their "deeply moving" tributes to her mother. She said the outpouring of affection over the last few days had been "overwhelming". "I have drawn great comfort from so many individual acts of kindness and respect", she said. Queen Mother's funeral
She revealed her sadness at the loss of her mother in an address recorded earlier on Monday, the day before the Queen Mother's funeral at Westminster Abbey. Speaking at Windsor Castle, the Queen gave thanks for her mother's long and eventful life. "She had an infectious zest for living, and this remained with her until the very end," the Queen said. But she said she hoped that at Tuesday's ceremony sadness would blend with a wider sense of thanksgiving for her mother's life and for the times in which she lived. Her death had, she added, left a "void" in the family's life. Shortly before the address was carried across Britain's TV and radio stations and online, the Queen Mother's four grandsons, princes Charles, Andrew, and Edward, and Viscount Linley, held a vigil at the four corners of her coffin. The Queen's broadcast at 1800 BST also came after other members of the Royal Family went on an impromptu walkabout among the crowds of thousands outside Westminster Hall. The queue for those wishing to pay their respects to the Queen Mother as her coffin lies in state continues to stretch along the Thames. The Queen's address set the tone for Tuesday's funeral at Westminster Abbey, where solemn pageantry will be tempered by a celebration of the Queen Mother's achievements. The four princes remained on silent guard for 20 minutes. Prince William and Harry were inside the hall to support their father and pay their own respects to their great-grandmother. Funeral timetable
Meanwhile The Princess Royal, her husband Commander Tim Lawrence, her son Peter Phillips and the Countess of Wessex spoke to the members of the public waiting in line to view the Queen Mother's coffin. The Royal party also shook hands and posed for photographs during the walk along the South Bank of the river Thames. Some members of the public have already claimed vantage points for the funeral itself. Although the funeral will be less spectacular than Friday's ceremonial procession, when 400,000 people lined the streets, very large crowds are expected. The service will be relayed on loud speakers along The Mall and outside Westminster Abbey on North Green. The funeral will begin just five hours after the end of public viewing of the Queen Mother's coffin. More than 500,000 people are expected to have paid tribute to her by the time she is finally laid to rest early on Tuesday evening at Windsor, alongside the body of her late husband King George VI and the ashes of her daughter Princess Margaret. Some 400,000 people lined the route of her funeral procession through the capital last Friday. Big crowds are expected to watch her funeral cortege travel from Westminster Hall to the Abbey. The tenor bell at Westminster Abbey will toll every minute for 101 minutes before the service. There will be a two-minute silence in many offices and shops at 1130 BST (1030 GMT) to mark the beginning of the funeral. Afterwards, a procession to Windsor will begin with a fly-past tribute by two Spitfires and Britain's only remaining airworthy Lancaster bomber, as the cortege moves up The Mall. Officials have warned Westminster Hall has to close at 0600 BST on Tuesday to allow funeral preparations to begin and some people are likely to be disappointed. Date: 8th April 2002 |
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