Plans for public to watch Her Majesty The Queen’s funeral announced
- Opportunity for public to line routes in London and Windsor for The Queen’s final journey
- Big screens will be put up across the country for people to watch the ceremony
- The funeral, on Monday 19 September, will also be broadcast live on BBC, Sky and ITV
- National Moment of Reflection will be held on Sunday 18 September
The funeral takes place on the morning of Monday 19 September alongside processions in London and Windsor, with public viewing areas and big screens in both locations.
Across the country big screens will be put up, including in London’s Hyde Park, Sheffield’s Cathedral Square, Birmingham’s Centenary Square, Carlisle’s Bitts Park, Edinburgh’s Holyrood Park and Coleraine Town Hall in Northern Ireland. Cinemas across the UK are also opening their screens to show the funeral – bringing together local communities to commemorate.
The funeral service and processions will be shown live on BBC One, ITV and Sky for those who wish to watch at home.
At 10.44am, The Queen’s coffin will be moved from the Palace of Westminster to Westminster Abbey for the state funeral. Two thousand guests are expected to attend the service, which will begin at 11am and followed by a national two-minute silence at 11.55am.
A public procession will begin at 12.15pm as Her Majesty’s coffin travels from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch in London.
The procession, which will proceed in seven groups and be supported by a service band, will travel along Broad Sanctuary, Parliament Square, Whitehall, Horse Guards Parade, Horse Guards Road, The Mall, Constitution Hill and end at London’s Wellington Arch.
Space dedicated for those with accessibility requirements is available at the Green Park side of The Mall and the St James’s Park side of The Mall. The Albert Memorial viewing areas will have British Sign Language interpreters and a hearing loop.
Her Majesty’s coffin will then be carried from Wellington Arch by the State Hearse to Windsor where The Queen will be laid to rest.
The hearse is due to arrive in Albert Road and, at 3.10pm, it will travel in procession along Albert Road and the Long Walk before arriving to St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle ahead of the committal service, where The Queen will buried next to the Duke of Edinburgh, which is not open to the public.
There are a limited number of public viewing areas on The Long Walk, including a number of viewing spaces for those with accessibility needs, and there will be big screens for people to watch the services and procession from London.
Those wishing to line the processional route are encouraged to plan ahead and prepare for delays to travel.
A National Moment of Reflection will take place at 8pm on Sunday 18 September. Community groups, clubs and other organisations, as well as people at home are being encouraged to mark this moment in the form of a one-minute silence.
- Sky News will provide full live coverage for free on Sky News, the Sky News App and on the Sky News YouTube channel, including a special programme starting at 9am from Westminster Abbey.
- ITV will broadcast the service and procession live as part of a special programme with a documentary film broadcast at 7.30pm and a special programme at 9pm.
- The BBC will be providing full coverage of The State Funeral of Her Majesty The Queen across television, radio, iPlayer and BBC Sounds. A special programme will be on air from 0800-1700 on BBC One, BBC Two and iPlayer with BSL signed coverage on BBC Two.
- British Sign Language Interpreters and on captioning will be on screen in Hyde Park. Hearing loops are available.
Details of local events and screenings of The Queen’s funeral can be found on gov.uk here. Events include:
- Bedford: Bedford Borough Council will hold a public screening of the funeral at Bedford Corn Exchange.
- Birmingham: The funeral will be shown on a big screen in Centenary Square.
- Bradford: Bradford Cathedral will show the funeral.
- Chester: Church services will take place on various dates across Chester, including at Chester Cathedral, Neston Parish, St Thomas Ellesmere Port and St Chad’s Winsford.
- Coventry: The funeral will be shown on a big screen in University Square.
- Exeter: The funeral will be screened at Northernhay Gardens, at Exeter City Football Club and at the Conference Centre at Sandy Park.
- Leeds: Big screens will be put up in Millennium Square.
- Litchfield: Lichfield Cathedral will hold a service of commemoration at 3.30pm on Sunday 18 September.
- Liverpool: A service of remembrance will take place at Liverpool Cathedral at 3pm on Sunday 18 September.
- Manchester: Manchester Cathedral will broadcast the funeral service on big screens.
- Newcastle upon Tyne: Big screens in Old Eldon Square will show the funeral service.
