It was 3.30pm when Leigh, Thony and James arrived in the back of the queue at Millennium Bridge to see the Queen lie in state.
None of them recognized as royalists however had totally different causes to return.
We’d by no means met however would spend the subsequent six hours attending to know one another very effectively.
As the marshals got here previous us alongside the riverside we got vivid yellow wristbands, I’d be the 4,251st particular person in line.
Construction employee Leigh Cooling had travelled from Tadley in Hampshire and arrived with a small bag and a black cap.
“My nan and grandad served in the army and so I’m coming for them today. I’m not a massive royalist but have an appreciation for what the queen has done,” he informed me.
The environment was jolly, folks have been laughing and chatting, and people passing by could not have guessed that everybody had gathered for a sombre event.
We’d been warned that we may very well be ready for as much as 30 hours within the queue, though it didn’t appear like many individuals have been ready for an in a single day wait, with some sporting heels, shorts and fits.
“I bet we’ll be in before midnight,” stated James Barber who stood behind me.
Watch the Queen mendacity in state
As we started transferring slowly, Leigh referred to as on one other man within the queue who had been sitting down, Thony Llaavye.
As the 4 of us started to stroll in direction of Westminster Leigh joked that we might be “the crew” and from then on, we appeared to stay collectively.
James, who lives in Bicester, stated he’d already had plans to be in London and determined to return to “pay his respects”. “It’s hard to describe, I just felt compelled to go,” he stated.
Thony did not have a lot curiosity within the Royal Family, however admired the Queen and wished to see her one final time.
Gin, lager and Wagamamas
It was virtually 5pm and the queue had stopped, we have been in Waterloo. Everyone was Thony’s telephone as he performed the dwell stream from inside Westminster Hall.
“It will be a breathtaking sight to see,” James stated.
A pause within the queue is probably one of many solely factors when you may go to the bathroom or get one thing to eat, however there’s no formal system, you depend in your neighbour to avoid wasting your area.
As Leigh sipped on a pint of beer from a close-by stand, James returned with a rooster katsu curry from Wagamamas.
It wasn’t simply our crew that was fuelling up, everybody started tucking into snacks they’d introduced of their baggage while others drank Pimms and cans of gin and tonic.
Down previous Big Ben and up in direction of St Thomas’ Hospital we realised that it will be unlikely that we might be ready for various hours.
Although we knew the place we have been headed, folks passing beside the queue look bewildered. Some maybe on the size and others weren’t followers of the royals.
Security tightened as queue zigzagged
Our conversations ranged from whether or not pineapple on pizza is appropriate, to the Ukraine battle and our households.
As we approached the south aspect of Lambeth Bridge our legs began to ache. It had solely taken us three hours to get from close to London Bridge all the best way to the sting of the gardens subsequent to the Palace of Westminster.
The safety tightened and the queues started to zig-zag, this was the longest half.
Although we quickly misplaced Thony on the portaloos, we managed to regroup within the gardens. It was inconceivable to gauge how many individuals have been behind us, however we have been now shuffling.
After passing by the airport-style safety checks below vivid flood lights, we knew have been shut.
As we stepped inside Westminster Hall the queue fell silent, it was the second everybody got here for.
We walked up a flight of stairs and as we entered the corridor, everybody’s shoulders appeared to drop forwards. It was inconceivable to overlook the coffin, grand, regal and raised on a platform.
The solely noise got here from the guards shuffling as they modified over.
As we filed down in two traces, folks curtseyed to the coffin, bowed their heads and wept. We left not more than 10 minutes after we arrived within the corridor.
“That was so worth the wait,” Leigh stated as everybody nodded in settlement. “I just don’t have anything to say,” Thony added. Everyone hugged earlier than dwelling and our final image was taken.
Although we might began as strangers that afternoon, we left with a reminiscence that solely our ‘crew’ will share.
Source: information.sky.com”