Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Today
Thousands Wait in Line to Pay Respects to Queen Mother
Aired April 08, 2002 - 10:31 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We move on to England, where thousands of people in London have been waiting in line around the clock to pay final respects to the Queen Mother. Her funeral is set for tomorrow, she is lying in state today at parliament's Westminster Hall.
Our Richard Quest is there, and brings us the latest live. Richard, I understand these lines are just unbelievable.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is the last day of lying in state and public morning, and, yes, Daryn, still they come by the thousands. The line is now probably a mile or two long at the moment, a five or six hour wait for those people -- and they are passing through Westminster Hall at a rate of around 3,000 an hour. The police say they may have to increase the speed at which people go through, to get everybody through. It is the last chance for people to pay their respects to the Queen Mother, because, obviously tomorrow is the funeral.
And Daryn, for those who are not so familiar with London, or don't know exactly the difference between Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Hall, I would like to now just show you exactly what is going to happen tomorrow when the actual funeral precession begins.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: ...in the early hours of tomorrow morning, when the doors are finally closed at Westminster Hall, just to my right. By then it is believed over 200,000 people will have filed past the coffin of the Queen Mother.
Once the doors are closed, the final preparations for the funeral service will be put into place. The coffin, with the crown on top, will be moved the 300 yards from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of British government, across Parliament Square to Westminster Abbey. And, once again, it will be carried on a gun carriage, as it was during the ceremonial precession on Friday.
In Westminster Abbey, one of the oldest and most ancient buildings in London, in the abbey, the funeral service will be before not only the royal family, but also 2,000 invited guests and at least a dozen monarchs and crowned heads from other European royal families. After the funeral service, the coffin will be taken by hearse 23 miles to Windsor Castle, where the final service of committal, a private service of committal, will be held with just the royal family present.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: And what is interesting about the people in the cue and what they are telling me, I just went to see them a short while ago, is that there is a great atmosphere. One of celebration of the Queen Mother's life, and a particular feeling of national identity. This is a time of a country coming together, and that will be interesting, because, Daryn, later this afternoon, two major events happen.
First of all, there will be a vigil by the royal family, three royal princes and a viscount, Edward, Andrew, and Charles, along with Viscount Linley, the grandsons. They will hold their vigil around the coffin when the public is walking through. That will be a very moving and solemn moment.
And then, the queen, Queen Elizabeth II is to address the nation. She doesn't do this very often, normally only once a year at Christmas, but now she has decided she wants to say thanks to the people for their outpouring of support and, most importantly, she wants to set the tone for tomorrow's funeral. So Daryn, a lot happening this afternoon. A beautiful day in London, and the queues, the thousands just keep arriving.
KAGAN: Richard, I had read that the queen, Queen Elizabeth, has been quite taken aback by the public response to the news of her mother's death.
QUEST: Yes, I think what everybody compared and was looking back to was Diana when there was this frenzy of emotion, this unbelievable outpouring, and there had always been an unspoken fear that obviously some older people would turn up to pay their respects, but the fear was that there simply wouldn't be this outpouring of emotion.
Well, the critics -- let me put it bluntly, Daryn. The critics have been proven wrong. There has been a very quiet emotion from the nation that basically says, thank you to the Queen Mother for her life of dedication and duty, and the royal family from everything -- I was at a briefing on Saturday, and the press officers in the briefing were saying, the queen is deeply touched. They simply didn't expect it would be this big.
KAGAN: Richard Quest joining us from London. I expect you will be with us tomorrow as well.
QUEST: I will indeed, Daryn.
KAGAN: We look forward to that.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
