After a week of church services, coffin processions, gun salutes and other official mourning ceremonies for Queen Elizabeth, Avena Madeo has had enough. Ms Madeo runs a street food shop in London’s Petticoat Lane and rolled her eyes on Thursday when asked about the Queen’s long farewell, which continues until her funeral at Westminster Abbey on Monday. “It’s too much,” she said as she prepared a crazy chicken wrap for a customer. No one talks about the war in Ukraine or the rising cost of living or energy shortages anymore, he added. “He has shut down everything else. And do you know how much they spent on it?’ Bashi Abdi nodded as he waited for a box of lamb asun. He stopped watching TV coverage days ago and is ambivalent about the monarchy in general. His main complaint was that the Queen’s death had led to the postponement of football matches. “I just hope football goes back to the way it was,” said the die-hard Arsenal fan. “That’s one thing you look forward to at the weekend.” Their views reflect a sharp divide that has developed in London and across Britain since the Queen died on September 8. While millions of people were glued to their televisions or queued for hours to catch a glimpse of the Queen’s coffin, many others have shrugged off the occasion or even argued against the ten-day mourning period. “Suddenly their grief is greater than anyone else’s,” Craig Aldreth said as he served coffee in a cafe in London’s south end on Thursday. Queen Elizabeth’s death pushes Commonwealth Caribbean kingdoms to referendums on republicanism “It’s not just propaganda for the monarchy, it’s propaganda for the British establishment,” added cafe patron Ben Morgan, who also had some time for Elizabeth’s heir, King Charles. It’s all an attempt to build a “national mythology around the monarchy” and paint a “positive image of Charles because he’s not the same as Elizabeth.” The government’s decision to declare Monday a national holiday in honor of the royal funeral had serious consequences for Charlotte Rushton. A 20 week pregnancy scan was scheduled for that day and has now been cancelled. “I was really, really upset,” said Mrs Rushton, who lives in Littlehampton, near Brighton. It was the last scan before her due date and she was already worried about it. The disturbances caused by official mourning only underscore the disconnect between the monarchy and its subjects, he added. Many of her friends were initially sentimental about the Queen after her death, but that changed as interruptions in everyday life increased. “It made them more frustrated about the Royal Family and what their meaning is,” Ms Rushton said. Members of the media work alongside people queuing on the South Bank to pay their respects to Britain’s Queen Elizabeth.HENRY NICHOLLS/Reuters In parts of central London the mood was very different. Ben Nicholson and his fiancee Siobhan Harkness, who is from Workington in northern England, waited nine hours to enter Westminster Hall on Thursday to pay their respects to the Queen. The queue stretched for eight kilometers at times and officials estimated that more than 700,000 people were expected to pass through the hall by Monday morning, when the Queen’s recumbency ends. “It’s worth it to be here and to be part of our nation’s history,” said Mr Nicholson, 29, who bowed at the casket. “She dedicated her whole life to the service of her country and the least we can do is say thank you.” He acknowledged that some people may be tired of all the media attention, but said they should recognize it “as a moment that will last a lifetime and that will be passed on to our children.” Farkhanda Ahmed felt the same way as she slowly walked the line with her mother, Shakeela Ahmed. The Queen “reigned for such a long time in Britain and I think we should say thank you and appreciate that,” Ms Ahmed said. But for Amanda Tapp the sight of so many people queuing to see a casket was hard to fathom.
King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Edward, Prince William, Prince Andrew, Camilla, The Queen Consort, Sir Timothy Lawrence, Sir Peter Phillips, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Beatrix and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent at Westminster Hall. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images 1 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth lies in State in an empty Westminster Hall before the public is allowed to pay their respects. POOL/Reuters 2 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth’s coffin, adorned with a Royal Standard and the Imperial Crown is pulled by a carriage of the Royal Horse Artillery of the King’s Royal Army, during the ceremonial procession. Aaron Chown/Getty Images 3 out of 30 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort pay their respects in Westminster Hall. Christopher Furlong/Getty Images 4 out of 30 King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Edward, Prince William, Prince Andrew, Camilla, The Queen Consort, Sir Timothy Lawrence, Sir Peter Phillips, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Beatrix and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent are seen inside Westminster Hall.Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe 5 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth’s coffin leaves Buckingham Palace to make the short journey to Westminster Hall. Kiran Ridley/The Globe and Mail 6 out of 30 A ceremonial procession carries Queen Elizabeth’s coffin. Carl Court/Getty Images 7 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth’s coffin leaves Buckingham Palace and travels down The Mall in a procession with her family and Royal Guards. Kiran Ridley/The Globe and Mail 8 out of 30 Crowds line the Mall and stretch to see Queen Elizabeth’s coffin from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall. Kiran Ridley/The Globe and Mail 9 out of 30 (Back row) Prince William, Prince Richard, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Front row) King Charles III and Princess Anne, walk behind the coffin. Chris Jackson/Getty Images 10 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth’s coffin during a procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, London. MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP/Getty Images 11 out of 30 Prince William, King Charles III, Prince Richard, Princess Anne and Prince Harry walk behind the coffin during the procession. Chris Jackson/Getty Images 12 out of 30 The Coldstream Guards march through Westminster during the procession of Queen Elizabeth’s coffin. JOHN SIMBLEY/The Associated Press 13 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin, adorned with a Royal Standard and the imperial crown of state, is pulled by a carriage of The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery.DANIEL LEAL/AFP/Getty Images 14 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin, adorned with a Royal Standard and the Imperial Crown of State, is pulled by a gun carriage of the King’s Royal Army Cavalry Artillery.MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP/Getty Images 15 out of 30 King Charles III and Prince William walk behind the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II during a procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall. Daniel Leal/The Associated Press 16 out of 30 Procession where Queen Elizabeth’s coffin is carried from Buckingham Palace to the Houses of Parliament to lie in state, London. POOL/Reuters 17 out of 30 Britain’s Camilla, Queen Consort and Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales arrive for a service to welcome Queen Elizabeth.CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images 18 out of 30 People watch as Britain’s King Charles III, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew march during a procession. HENRY NICHOLLS/Reuters 19 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth’s coffin arrives at Westminster Hall from Buckingham Palace for her lie-in-state in London. ALKIS KONSTANTINIDIS/Reuters 20 out of 30 The procession with Queen Elizabeth’s coffin arrives at Westminster Hall from Buckingham Palace. ALKIS KONSTANTINIDIS/Reuters 21 out of 30 People wait to watch Queen Elizabeth’s coffin during a procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster.LOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images 22 out of 30 James, Viscount Severn and Lady Louise Windsor pay their respects at Westminster Hall. Chris Furlong/Getty Images 23 out of 30 King Charles III and members of the royal family walk with Queen Elizabeth’s coffin. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images 24 out of 30 People line the Queen Victoria Memorial and the Mall as King Charles III and members of the royal family walk with Queen Elizabeth’s coffin. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images 25 out of 30 Members of the armed forces walk in formation near Queen Elizabeth’s coffin before a procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall in London. SGT LEE GODDARD/The Associated Press 26 out of 30 Queen Elizabeth’s coffin during a procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall in London. WPA Pool/Getty Images 27 out of 30 The Queen’s hearse descends into Whitehall from Buckingham Palace. Tristan Fewings/Getty Images 28 out of 30 Guards march past Queen Elizabeth’s coffin.TOBY MELVILLE/AFP/Getty Images 29 of 30 Members of the public look over The Queen Victoria Memorial and The Mall as Queen Elizabeth’s coffin passes by.CHIP SOMODEVILLA/AFP/Getty Images 30 out of 30
Ms Tapp also stopped watching the non-stop TV shows days ago and happened to be walking past Westminster Hall on Thursday when she stopped to admire the line. “I watched TV the first day, when he died, but not since,” he said as he leaned against the police fence to catch a glimpse of the mourners. “Thank God for Netflix,” he added with a laugh. “You can go find a series if you really can’t handle any more coffins being dragged through the streets.” 1 out of 30 2 out of 30 3 out of 30 4 out of 30 5 out of 30 6 out of 30 7 out of 30 8 out of 30 9 out of 30 10 out of 30 11 out of 30 12 out of 30 13 out of 30 14 out of 30 15 out of 30 16 out of 30 17 out of 30 18 out of 30 19 out of 30 20 out of 30 21 out of 30 22 out of 30 23 out of 30 24 out of 30 25 out of 30 26 out of 30 27 out of 30 28 out of 30 29 of 30 30 out of 30 Back at Petticoat Lane, Ben Hidalgo and his sister, Annie, also couldn’t understand the outburst of grief. “I think it gives people something to see because it was an icon of British culture,” said Mr Hidalgo, 22, who is studying…
