Queen’s funeral – latest: King Charles ‘to have slimmed-down coronation’ amid cost-of-living crisis

New monarch reportedly keen to show he understands people’s troubles

Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin carried from Westminster Hall ahead of state funeral

King Charles III is reportedly planning a “less expensive” coronation ceremony than his mother’s as he wishes to avoid extravagance while ordinary people struggle with the cost of living crisis.

A date has yet to be set for the crowning of the new monarch, though royal precedent and a large amount of planning involved suggest the ceremony will be at least several months away – possibly next spring.

Charles’s coronation “will be shorter, smaller and less expensive” than the Queen’s in 1953, a royal source told the DailyMirror.

The source told the paper: “The King is very aware of the struggles felt by modern Britons so will see his wishes carried through that although his coronation ceremony should stay right and true to the long held traditions of the past, it should also be representative of a monarchy in a modern world.”

Meanwhile, the Queen’s name has been inscribed alongside her mother’s, father’s and Prince Philip’s on a ledger stone in the Windsor chapel where she was buried on Monday evening.

Key points

• King Charles ‘vows to have slimmed down coronation’ amid cost of living crisis
• Queen’s name inscribed on to chapel stone alongside those of parents and Philip
• King Charles flying to Balmoral to privately mourn mother’s death
• Queen’s funeral service seen by average of 26.2 million viewers in UK

[20 September 2022 22:41 · Katy Clifton]

Queen’s name inscribed on to chapel stone

The Queen’s name has been inscribed alongside her mother’s, father’s and husband’s on the ledger stone in the Windsor chapel where she is buried.

The late monarch was laid to rest together with the Duke of Edinburgh on Monday evening in a private service attended by the King and the royal family, which followed her state funeral at Westminster Abbey and committal service in Windsor.

Buckingham Palace said the inscription on the ledger stone in the George VI Memorial Chapel now has the names of the Queen, her parents and Philip, along with their years of birth and death.

The stone, which is new, has replaced the black stone slab set into the floor which had featured the names George VI and Elizabeth in gold lettering.

[21 September 2022 00:55 · Tom Batchelor]

King Charles ‘vows to have slimmed down coronation’

King Charles plans to have a slimmed-down coronation ceremony as he wishes to avoid extravagance while ordinary people struggle with the cost of living crisis, it has been reported.

A date has yet to be set for the crowning of the new monarch, though royal precedent and the large amount of planning involved suggest the ceremony will be at least several months away – possibly next spring.

Read the full story:

[21 September 2022 02:05 · Tom Batchelor]

Man accused of trying to grab Queen’s coffin ‘did not believe she was dead’

A man who appeared to approach the Queen’s coffin in Westminster Hall on Friday night did not believe she was dead, a court has heard.

Muhammad Khan, 28, allegedly left the queue while the monarch was lying in state as the live feed briefly cut away.

Mr Khan was arrested and appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, charged with two counts under the Public Order Act.

More on the story here:

[21 September 2022 04:34 · Namita Singh]

King Charles ‘vows to have slimmed down coronation’ amid cost of living crisis

King Charles plans to have a slimmed-down coronation ceremony as he wishes to avoid extravagance while ordinary people struggle with the cost of living crisis, it has been reported.

A date has yet to be set for the crowning of the new monarch, though royal precedent and the large amount of planning involved suggest the ceremony will be at least several months away – possibly next spring.

The government has made no plans so far, Michelle Donelan, the culture secretary, said on Tuesday.

Pressed on LBC as to whether the coronation should be scaled down in light of the precarious economic circumstances, Ms Donelan said: “We will be considering everything, but we haven’t made these decisions yet.”

The King, however, is reportedly keen to demonstrate his understanding of the problems facing ordinary members of the public by holding a relatively modest ceremony.

My colleague Liam James reports:

[21 September 2022 04:50 · Namita Singh]

Queen’s name inscribed on to Chapel Stone alongside those of parents and Philip

The Queen’s name has been inscribed alongside her mother’s, father’s and Prince Philip’s on a ledger stone in the Windsor chapel where she was buried on Monday evening.

The late monarch was laid to rest together with the Duke of Edinburgh in a private service attended by King Charles and the royal family, which followed her state funeral at Westminster Abbey and committal service in Windsor.

Buckingham Palace said the inscription on the ledger stone in the George VI Memorial Chapel has the names of the Queen, George VI, the Queen mother and Philip, along with their years of birth and death.

The stone has replaced the black slab set into the floor which featured the names George VI and Elizabeth in gold lettering.

The new stone now contains, in list form, “George VI 1895-1952” and “Elizabeth 1900-2002” followed by a metal Garter Star, and then “Elizabeth II 1926-2022” and “Philip 1921-2021”.

Liam James reports:

[21 September 2022 05:05 · Namita Singh]

Mourners leave floral tributes to the Queen at Windsor Castle

Mourners have travelled hundreds of miles to lay cards and flowers outside the walls of Elizabeth II’s final resting place in Windsor Castle.

Although the official mourning period ended on Monday, when the late monarch was buried in St George’s Chapel, tributes have continued to pour in from across the country and the wider world.

Several cards, thanking Elizabeth for her service and expressing sympathy for the royal family, had been placed by people from as far away as Poland and Hong Kong.

Others were from closer at hand, with Fortescues, a cafe across the street from the castle, writing: “It has been a pleasure to be your neighbour.”

With the main entrance blocked off, flowers – particularly red roses and sunflowers – along with candles, flags, balloons and teddy bears have piled up along the castle’s west wall.

Read the details in this report:

[21 September 2022 05:20 · Namita Singh]

Queen’s corgis will understand emotion of missing the monarch, says dog expert

A dog expert has revealed that the Queen’s corgis will feel the loss of the monarch, and may even display signs of depression following her death.

It was announced that the Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York are to look after the Queen’s beloved corgis, Muick and Sandy, who even made an appearance at the Windsor Castle quadrangle during her funeral on Monday.

John Smith, dog expert and founder of pet personalisation product website Yappy, said while dogs do not understand the concept of death, the canines might feel the loss of their owner being gone.

“Dogs don’t quite understand the full extent of absence due to their owner passing away, so they don’t grieve death in a sense… Instead, they suffer a feeling of loss and emotional despair which abandoned dogs would feel too,” Mr Smith said.

Report:

[21 September 2022 05:35 · Namita Singh]

Floral tributes for Queen to be composted and used in Royal Parks

Floral tributes to the Queen will be composted and given a new lease of life in planting projects throughout the Royal Parks.

It is expected that work to remove items laid by the public will begin on Monday, a week after the state funeral, and will continue for seven days.

Visitors will still be able to lay tributes but blooms which have already deteriorated will be moved to the Hyde Park nursery.

Once taken away, any remaining packaging, cards and labels will be removed, before the plant material is composted in Kensington Gardens.

The compost will then be used on landscaping projects and shrubberies across the Royal Parks.

More in this report:

[21 September 2022 05:50 · Namita Singh]

Man awarded MBE in Queen’s last honours ‘grateful’ for chance to attend funeral

A man who was made an MBE in the Queen’s last birthday honours says he is “forever grateful” at having the chance to attend her funeral.

John Frace, 27, from Dunoon in Argyll, said it was hard to put into words the experience of attending the funeral, after being one of 182 MBEs invited to the service.

He received the honour after creating his website, TravellingTabby, which translated often complicated and hard to read data sets about hospital admissions and deaths into easily understandable numbers.

Mr Frace, a former student at the University of the Highlands and Islands, said the late monarch had been a “constant, calm presence” in his life.

In a thread on Twitter outlining his experiences at the funeral, he added: “I had the honour of attending Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral at Westminster Abbey.

Read the details here:

[21 September 2022 06:05 · Namita Singh]

Queen’s funeral service seen by average of 26.2 million viewers in UK

The Queen’s funeral service at Westminster Abbey on Monday was watched by more than 26 million viewers in the UK, one of the country’s biggest ever TV audiences, provisional figures show.

The service was broadcast simultaneously on a range of channels between 11am and just after midday, including BBC One and Two, ITV and Sky News.

An average of 26.2 million people watched across all channels, according to overnight ratings released by the research organisation Barb.

The figure is not quite as high as the official ratings for the funeral service of Diana, Princess of Wales in September 1997.

This was seen by an average of 32.1 million viewers, including 19.3 million on BBC One and 11.7 million on ITV, and remains the highest audience for a television broadcast since comparable figures began in August 1981.

Report: