Utter madness. IQ of the nation.

BlueBelle

I m not anti royalist but think it’s ridiculous to cart this great big lead lined coffin with a tiny little old lady in it half way round the country, and even more ridiculous for people to queue for 12 /15 hours to look for a few seconds at a wooden box, just to say they ve been there they re not there to pay respects you can pay your respects in any local church or your own home if you want to, without looking at a wooden box for a few seconds, which doesn’t makes your respect any better than anyone sitting shedding a tear at home
There should have been one or maybe two channels dedicated to this on both TV and radio the rest should have carried on as normal and pubic events especially charitable ones should not have been affected
It makes a mockery of it all in my opinion especially when I hear that others funerals are being abandoned would the Queen really have wanted that it’s become mass hysteria

You, ve got it just right in my opinion BlueBelle.It has become mass hysteria just like people did for Diana. I'm not an ardent anti-Royalist either.
One woman in Edinborough was boasting she had been in 7 times for what?

If everyone stayed at home and watched it on telly there’d be no crowds for us to marvel at as we watch it on telly.

That would work for me.

Pantglas2

nadateturbe

When anti-monarchidrs express their views, it's always seen as 'ranting".

Ha ha - probably because they usually end their lecture with ‘Rant over’!

Because they are made to feel that way by responses like "oh here we go again" from monarchists.

Agree with you Bluebelle, why couldn’t BBC2 and another channel done the coverage and leave BBC1 alone, also the blinking news, we put up with death all day then the news comes on and the only thing happening in the world is the death of the Queen. Sick of it all

I take my hat off to anyone who can queue for 30 hours. As much as I loved the Queen I couldn't do it.

It's down to individuals what they want to do. To pay their respects, for memories to tell their grandkids or whatever the reason, it's up to them why they go.
Belfast is not far from me, but I stayed home yesterday and watched it on TV. The thought of queues, crowds and standing for ages isn't for me.

I'm pleased to see so many people turning out, but I really wouldn't be one of them unless the coffin was being driven through my road. I don't have the stamina. It's gratifying to see on tv people for whom the Queen meant a great deal, and interesting to follow the proceedings, something not seen since I was a year old and which I may never see again. I agree with Beckett that it would not be proper for the coffin to be carted around the country as might have been done many centuries ago. It's wonderful to have television nowadays to be able (if you wish) to see ceremonies which in years gone by would only have been witnessed by a very privileged few. I think few would deny that when it comes to pomp and ceremony, we lead the world

Barmeyoldbat

Agree with you Bluebelle, why couldn’t BBC2 and another channel done the coverage and leave BBC1 alone, also the blinking news, we put up with death all day then the news comes on and the only thing happening in the world is the death of the Queen. Sick of it all

I know, Barmey, programmes I wanted to watch have been cancelled - but they will be rescheduled. Do you have no interest in this great historical moment and the accompanying ceremonies, which the public have never seen before and we may never see again? I by no means watch it all, I have things to do, but I am conscious that this is something that may never happen again in my lifetime.

I went to see the QM laid in state as we were in London and I was fortunate enough to be at Diana’s funeral as a guest of the British Army.

We discussed going to London but decided against, I’m no longer able to deal with crowds and the security risk concerns me.

We made do with a proclamation in a local market town and we have enjoyed the TV coverage.

I find it hard to comprehend someone queuing for days to pay their respects.

I would not choose to queue and have not been watching the events on TV very much either. I do understand that people respond differently to such events and that many feel a need to pay their respects in person to someone who has delivered on her promise in a role she never chose, been a figurehead for so many years.

However, I do have a major problem with the potential impact on individuals as a consequence of decisions taken by various organisations in the light of the unexpected respectful Bank Holiday. Evidently (press reports) Cancer consultations and operations are being cancelled; many other hospital appointments are being cancelled. Businesses closing, who have staff on zero hours contracts are not paying them for those missed hours, (Press reports) caused through no fault of their own! (Zero hours contract work often means seriously struggling to make ends meet!!) So many other examples

In the meantime, it seems that Parliament is in recess ....and at the moment intends to stay in recess until after the Party Conferences, apart from 2 days. There is a desperate rush to get the very urgent plans re Energy through in those 2 days. Everything else appears to be on hold!!

I honestly can't get my head round prioritising respect and mourning and Party Conferences over living people who are seriously struggling and in a total panic about how they are going to survive the winter!

And I am not anti-royalist!

That is exactly how I feel.
Thank you for saying it so well.

GSM I just love to watch the pomp and ceremony and you have to admit we do it well, but I get fed up with all the chat and interviews with people saying the same thing over and over again but in a. Different way. Mind you when the king of Cambodia they certainly did pomp and even built the funeral pyre on the green right outside our hotel we fortunate to be there over 2 years.

vampirequeen. Funerals are going ahead here in my part of Scotland. They have not been banned.

Yes Barmey, I enjoy the pomp and ceremony too but get bored with people saying the same old stuff and people in the crowds being interviewed - Why are you here? Well I think we all know the answer.

As I was 4 in 1952, she has been on throne for most of my life, but I don't feel any compulsion to travel to see her coffin, buy a floral tribute, etc. Elizabeth II did a grand job, one which was not of her choosing, and I have enjoyed reading some of the articles on her life, many of which make social history come alive for me. I feel sad for her family, but to see those crowds waving their selfie-sticks just to be able to say "I was there" seems to show a distinct lack of respect. And don't get me started on the media coverage: over half our daily paper has been dedicated to the subject, and we never know when switching on the radio or television if it will be a re-hash of the previous day's comments. I don't know which aspect of the events hasn't been covered at least twice! Sorry to be so negative about a Great British icon, and I was sad to hear the news of her passing. Rant over!

I don't think it's a sign of low IQ. We've been brainwashed since birth to think of the RF as special/better than us and that rather than them living a very privileged life we actually owe them because of what they've sacrificed for us. It's instilled in us that they do their 'duty' but, let's be honest, no one ever tells us what their 'duty' is.

I just love watching the ceremony and the ‘costumes’. I don’t feel any particular reverence for the RF. I do WISH people wouldn’t applaud the coffin, though. When did this start? I cringe every time I hear it.

There was a small ripple of clapping up the road from where I was standing but the concentrated glares from all round put a stop to it.
Maybe people are more used to triumphant team buses after an event or containing athletes deserving of applause?

It doesn’t seem appropriate for the Queen.

We can see far more on tv than the people who go to London. The missing elements of course, are the atmosphere and the knowledge that you were there at such a momentous time in history, which you can't recreate at home. But there's no way I could stand in a queue for hours.

vampirequeen it's easy to Google what the duties of Head of State are if you're not sure.

As far as I'm concerned, it's not just to do with who the Queen was, it's disrespectful to applaud when someone has died, surely?
Especially the whooping and loud whistles heard yesterday.

It seems to be a recent phenomenon, I remember when service people were repatriated through Royal Wootton Bassett there was applause. Perhaps because of their sacrifice but I thought men removing headgear and everyone bowing their heads in respectful silence would have been more appropriate.

I don't think it's appropriate for anyone.

Call me old-fashioned.

The pomp and ceremony all seems to be part of the illusion that the royal family are on a different higher plain than the general public. It is constructed to ensure the ongoing status of royalty. The queen once said that " We have to be seen to be believed " A very wise lady to keep the royal line in power and seen as extra special. Why are they viewed with such reverence ?
I am sorry the Queen has died. She lived a fulfilled life and has earned respect from all over the world. But I would now like a referendum and a review on whether the population of the UK want a monarchy. This would have to be next year with a respectful distance from the Queens death .

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-243330-screenshot-2022-09-14-203619.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-656317-screenshot-2022-09-14-203749.jpg

vampirequeen it's easy to Google what the duties of Head of State are if you're not sure.

Got to say, that approach isn't helping me much.

M0nica

It is very annoying isn't it Paddyann when everybody doesn't agree with you and do or feel just like you.

Those with wider more sympathetic minds understand that people are very different with very different lives and experiences and react very differently to different events in their lives and they respect their right to do so.

The fact of the matter is like it or not, many, many people in this country and around the world have been profoundly and deeply affected by the death of the Queen, they are entitled to be so and should be treated with the same respect that we offer those to whom this event is not germane.

The Queen chose to die in Scotland and her route south has been, almost a straight line from Balmoral to Buckingham Palace. All along that route, except, obviously, when flying south, the route has been lined, 6 and 8 thick with those wanting to pay their last respects. Queues up to 5 miles long are expected for the lying in state.

The fact of the matter is that a significant proportion of the population, possibly even a majority, want to be part of this major historic event.

There is nothing to be gained by jumping up and down and throwing your toys out of the pram because you do not.

A bank holiday has been announced but there have been no instructions given, hints dropped etc etc to say that other funerals should be delayed or hospital appointments cancelled. These decisions are being made by the organisations involved and those are the ones who should be held to account for making decisions that were not necessary and are causing families distress.

Well said Monica. This is a once in seventy years event so a shame that people are carrying on as if their tv viewing will never be the same again and their lives and futures have been permanently disrupted.

I much prefer the monarchy we have to the various presidents that other countries endure and impressed with how many countries are hoping to attend and how sharp and well orchestrated the various parts have been.

Charles and Camilla must be exhausted. I only popped out to the local shops and needed a sit down to recover.

Surely this can only be a good thing to gather a huge number of the world’s leaders together in a common cause?

750,000 people are expected to troop past the coffin over the next few days, which will mean a lot to them, but I won’t be one of them, not with my dodgy knee!