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The Coronation of King Charles III. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired May 06, 2023 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a very warm welcome to all our viewers joining us from around the world. I'm Isa Soares, live outside Buckingham Palace. And this is CNN's special coverage of the coronation of King Charles III.

And it's 8:00 in the morning right now here in the U.K., where Britons are waking up to the beginnings of the unique royal event. Many have been staking their spots not far from here to catch a glimpse of King Charles III when he heads to his coronation on a carriage.

You can see there live images coming to us from Westminster Abbey. The abbey doors opened 30 minutes or so ago.

And this video was shared overnight by the royal family on Twitter with the caption, "Westminster Abbey is ready for the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla."

Many people starting to arrive. So in the early hours of this morning, they put that little drape by the doors, of course, because of the very temperamental weather we've been seeing in London the last two days or so.

But you're seeing just how beautiful and stunning and how quickly it's filling up there, Westminster Abbey, with all the guests. Thousands of British troops will also be taking part in that procession to Westminster Abbey. They've been arriving at Waterloo Station ahead of that parade.

Very busy morning. That first procession to the service gets underway in about 2.5 hours, in fact. After the crowning, the king and queen will depart the abbey in a procession back to Buckingham Palace.

The last coronation was 70 years ago. For many Britons, it will be the first they've ever seen it. Here's what actually being here, marking it, feels to one family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It feels very special to be here with my family, to spend such a special moment, which could be like once in a lifetime. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you all are going to camp out tonight.

Dan, you're one of the parents.

How do you feel about camping out with this many little ones?

DAN, PARENT: Crazy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: That's a very brave dad camping out with so many children. We go now to Nada Bashir.

This is a truly family event, isn't it?

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It really is. And everyone here is in high spirits. I have to say, it is really filling up now, very crowded. In fact, the security teams on the ground here have told us this walkway, where the procession will take place, is now at capacity.

So you can imagine the scale of the crowds that have gathered here. Some have been waiting for days, camping out. Others have tried their luck arriving this morning, have got themselves a good spot, waiting to see that procession.

We will see King Charles and Queen Camilla making their way in the carriage to Westminster Abbey. Not long to go. Many people are excited to catch a glimpse of the new king and queen. We've been speaking to some of them.

Hello, you came down for jubilee.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

BASHIR: Now you're back for the coronation.

Why have you decided to come back?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's such a great atmosphere. We loved the queen. We know Charles has got some big shoes to fill. But I think he can do it. We want to support the royal family. They've gotten a lot of bad publicity and we want to support them. We love being British and we love the royal family.

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BASHIR: We know everyone was a big fan of the queen. There was a lot of sadness, crowds showing up.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We know she would want this definitely.

I mean, who's going to replace the queen?

It's a tough one but I think he's going to do a good job.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, he's always been so dignified as far as I'm concerned. I think it's great and it's great everyone being here.

BASHIR: And the atmosphere of course.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really nice. We met so many nice people at the jubilee and it was such good fun. So it's definitely worth it.

BASHIR: Are you hoping to catch a glimpse of --

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I am, really looking forward to it.

BASHIR: Enjoy the rest of your day.

If you just take a look, Isa, it is really crowded here. We have already had security announcements now, calling people to take care, look around, make sure they're not in the way of people, of course, staying safe.

It is very crowded here but everyone is in high spirits. Despite the warning there could well be rain soon, many people are simply so excited to see the king, King Charles, and Queen Camilla making their way to the abbey for the coronation ceremony.

SOARES: Nada Bashir, thank you very much.

I want to show you again the images we got because Westminster Abbey opened in the last 35 minutes or so. I want to take you inside Westminster Abbey, as guests start to arrive. More than 2,200 guests will be arriving today. Some famous names, obviously members of the royal family, leaders from around the world, religious leaders.

It's going to be a much more inclusive, of course, ceremony. This is something that the king really wanted to showcase. It's filling up very, very quickly and more than, of course, lots of peers as well. The bit of controversy here, some peers weren't very happy.

They did not get an invite because King Charles felt that it was better reflected to show a more inclusive and more modern Britain, of course, if it had members of the public, members who have played a part in the community.

I spoke to one gentleman about two hours ago, who had made something like 90 million bottles of gel actually during COVID-19. He worked in a distillery. He produced beer basically. He stopped producing that to make those bottles.

I also met and spoke to members of Prince's Trust, the charity the then prince founded when he was very young in the 1970s. So they will also be taking part in this coronation. So important, of course, that members of the public will also be there and playing a part in this historic moment. There will be one last-minute change, though, in the Westminster Abbey

ceremony. It concerns a traditional pledge of allegiance to the new king. The original plan was, if you remember, for the Archbishop of Canterbury to call on people in U.K. to recite it in full but the idea drew backlash.

The Church of England released a new text, saying people will have the option to say only, "God save King Charles" instead of reciting the full allegiance. Sharon Carpenter joins me now.

Sharon, I mean this change of the allegiance, explain why this is so important, why it wasn't well received.

SHARON CARPENTER, BROADCAST JOURNALIST: It wasn't well received. I mean if you think about it, some of the polls that have been done lately, one of them by YouGov, which shows a very large percentage of young people do not -- they're indifferent when it comes to the monarchy.

And some of them believe that there should be an elected head of state instead of a monarch. So when you're talking to people like that and you're saying, OK, well, swear a vow of allegiance to the king and his successors, it's not going to go over very well.

So I think loosening it up a little bit and letting people know, OK, we're not demanding that you do this; we're suggesting, you know, if you want to, if you feel comfortable with it. I think that's definitely a much better approach.

SOARES: What has been very well received, Sharon -- and correct me if I'm wrong -- is this idea of bringing members of the public, those who worked in the community, inviting them to the coronation over peers.

Is that a fair assessment?

CARPENTER: It's a fair assessment, definitely. And I'm looking at this as the people's coronation. And King Charles knows that this is a very vital moment for him right now. It's a new reign. There are, as I mentioned, a lot of young people who do not feel that the monarchy is important.

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CARPENTER: And so it's very important for him to reach out to those people and for them to look at the monarchy as somewhat relatable and inclusive.

A lot of the changes, you know, these modern twists that he's added, certainly making the congregation more diverse, also adding women bishops, which is fantastic, and faith leaders of multiple different faiths. He wants the people of Britain to look at this coronation and to see themselves.

SOARES: And as you were talking, we're looking, of course, at live images coming to us just outside Westminster Abbey, as so many of the 2,200 or so guests start to arrive at the abbey. And we did get, Sharon, the order of service a couple of hours ago.

Of course it's a celebratory occasion but also a very solemn one. It's steeped in deep tradition. But we've got the details and we know it won't include Harry, the Duke of Sussex. And Andrew, the Duke of York, will not be part of the procession.

Is that the right call, you think?

CARPENTER: I would have loved to have seen Harry as part of the procession. Andrew, I think, most of us are OK with him not being a part of it. But Harry, I mean he flew all the way over. There was so much discussion and so much talk about will he or won't he make it.

And I think a lot of people were very happy to hear that Harry would be attending the coronation and were hoping we would see him in some sort of a formal role, see him part of the procession and then also see him on the Buckingham Palace balcony.

And I find it very unfortunate he's not going to be part of the procession. But I'm wondering if he had something to do with that decision as well and perhaps he feels that he wants to keep his involvement with the coronation to a minimum.

Maybe he's not ready to go all in because I just can't imagine King Charles, at this point in time saying, well, thanks for coming over but, sorry, you can't be part of this. You can't be part of that. So I wonder if it was a joint decision.

SOARES: And we're looking at images from outside Westminster Abbey, the high altar there, the coronation chair, where the king will sit. Just in the last 20 minutes or so, you were talking about the balcony. We saw the drape, the beautiful red drape being put up. We've also seen the ceremonial standard, the flag up again.

The question that many people are asking, in terms of what relates to Harry, one is, where will Harry sit inside Westminster Abbey?

Because that will tell us a bit of a sense of the relationship between the royal family is at the moment.

But also will he be at the balcony?

What is your sense?

Do you think he will be included in this?

CARPENTER: My sense originally was that he would be included in the balcony. But now, knowing that he's not going to be a part of the procession, now I do have my doubts.

I do think it would be a very grand statement by the king if he does have Harry up there, though.

And I think that nothing would say this is a modern-day monarchy better than that visual right there, to have Harry alongside the king and Queen Camilla and his brother, Prince William, although the two of them, from what we know, are not on speaking terms.

But that is an image that is going to live on, if it's the image we get throughout history. And it does say, OK, we can put our differences to the side. We are a family. It's family first but we're also doing this for the good of the people.

And in the past, of course, the royals have done everything to keep scandal at bay. But in this situation, scandal and controversy has sort of been invited in by inviting Harry to the coronation.

So again, I think that it would be a grand statement, saying, OK, we are a modern-day monarchy and, you know, we can have our differences and still move forward.

SOARES: Yes, that will speak volumes, of course, if he's included in the balcony. But also, where will he sit inside Westminster Abbey all gives us signs, of course, of how that relationship with the king, whether that's frayed or if that's being patched up. Sharon, really appreciate it. I'll be speaking to you in the hours ahead. Thank you, Sharon.

Straight ahead right here, we'll look at the myriad of ways Commonwealth countries are marking the coronation of the king.

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SOARES: Welcome back, everyone.

When King Charles takes the crown in just a matter of hours today, he will also be honored by representatives from the Commonwealth. As you can see, they're inside Westminster Abbey. The doors opened about 45 minutes ago. Many people starting to arrive.

The guests, about 2,200 guests; I can see there Emma Thompson right there in that beautiful kind of red-orange dress. She's arrived. The actor, Stephen Fry, as well, the writer and comedian. Many guests arriving very early, of course --

[03:20:00]

SOARES: -- for security concerns, getting there very early. Don't want to delay the ceremony in any way whatsoever. Of course many members with ties to the Commonwealth, leaders will also be there.

That is a group of countries with historic callings to the British Empire, some of which still recognize the monarch as their head of state.

It just gives you a show, right there on your map, what we're talking about in terms of country. Among those is Australia, which is marking the coronation with several events, including this tree-planting ceremony.

But compared to the pageantry in London, those celebrations are relatively muted. And in some Commonwealth states, the coronation will be largely ignored. Let's get more from our correspondents. Angus Watson is in Australia.

Angus, how is it being marked where you?

ANGUS WATSON, CNN PRODUCER: Well, as you said, Australia is one of the 14 countries around the world outside of the United Kingdom where King Charles III is already head of state. That's a controversial thing here in Australia. A lot of people believe that an Australian should be in that role.

So the celebrations here, I have to say, are rather muted. There are some ceremonies at government institutions. But the average person here, a little bit ambivalent about this coronation ceremony that's going ahead Saturday.

Now interestingly, people will watch it on TV for the first time. When Queen Elizabeth II was coronated (sic) in 1953, TV hadn't arrived in Australia yet. That gives a sense of just how historic this moment was. So people will be tuning in to get a sense of the traditions and the ceremonies behind that.

Will they engage with those?

Will they see modern Australia reflected in all this Westminster Abbey on Saturday?

Remains to be seen, Isa.

SOARES: Stephanie, to you. We're starting to see so many guests arrive. It's an historical day. It's going to be a solemn one but one full of pageantry.

Will people be tuning in?

Will they be marking this occasion in Lagos?

STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN SENIOR AFRICA EDITOR: So, Isa, there's just not a sense here that people really care, to be frank, about this coronation. Only the true diehard royals will be celebrating privately and, as Angus says, in government institutions over here.

Many people just don't feel that it really has much to do with them. They think it's great for England. And, you know, Nigeria, of course, is a former British colony and has been independent from Britain since 1960. And so many remember some of the atrocities committed in the name of British Empire and also during colonialism.

And as young people learn more about these atrocities, as they learn about more of these things, there's a growing sense of disconnect that our elders suffered so much in the hands of representatives of these institutions. These institutions have not much to do with us. Africa has the youngest population in the world. About 70 percent of

people here are under 30. So many of them don't really get a sense that the modern British monarchy is very relevant to them, Isa.

SOARES: Stephanie Busari for us there.

Angus Watson, appreciate it.

Look at these incredible images coming in. Anna and I were talking earlier about just a day of -- a spectacular day of spectacular pageantry, of course, as you would only expect in a ceremony like this.

We are, of course, only hours away from the processional. We'll be seeing several trains arriving there and many, many members of the army will be taking part. We've been hearing music for quite a bit. Lots of shiny shoes and pristine uniforms and very white gloves.

They've been training and practicing, rehearsing in the overnight hours we've seen the last couple of weeks. This is military precision and they can't get a foot wrong of course.

The Archbishop of Canterbury hails the coronation of King Charles as a celebration of wonderful diversity.

How will King Charles handle the wide diversity of his subjects?

Let's bring in Bidisha Mamata.

Thank you very much for joining us. I might have to interrupt you, of course, as we get more video coming in, of course, inside the abbey.

How do you think this -- I mean, we're talking so much about how he wants this to be inclusive.

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SOARES: At least the coronation.

Is it in your view?

BIDISHA MAMATA, BROADCASTER AND ROYAL WATCHER: It's definitely more diverse and inclusive than the one in 1953 and that signals that we're in a new era altogether. So we associate Queen Elizabeth II with the post-war era. And we associate the Commonwealth with the post-war decolonization era.

I think it's only right and good that, as we move forward with King Charles, everyone across the world, Commonwealth and non-Commonwealth alike, will say to themselves, do we really need this?

Is it time to evolve and move on?

And saying goodbye to King Charles as the head of state needn't be a violent, angry, aggressive act at all.

SOARES: Some countries have done it.

MAMATA: Absolutely right and they've done it sort of seamlessly, in a way that's accepted by everyone because, of course, you have to evolve. You have to reckon with the past. And I think King Charles, he's not stupid.

SOARES: Yes.

MAMATA: He's a history buff. He knows that empires come and empires go because he is into his ancient history and his archaeology. In fact, that's what makes him quite quirky as a king.

SOARES: We see Andrew Lloyd Webber sitting outside Westminster Abbey.

We've been seeing so many polls in the last few weeks or so, how the British public view the monarchy.

Where do you stand on the numbers relatively in terms of the younger generation?

Is there a connection, you think?

If you look at the crowds, there's lots of young people, lots of different generations, of course.

What do you make?

Can this new monarch unite the country further, bring in the younger generation?

MAMATA: He may certainly want to. I think we shouldn't be misled by what we're seeing today because today is just a great day out for everyone.

SOARES: Yes.

MAMATA: I've seen entire families with their camping gear, groping through the darkness because they want to have a front row seat.

Moving forward, of course, if you're 7 years old today, you're going to look at this guy and go, what's he doing having a big party with all these sparkling uniforms as you mentioned?

SOARES: Don't want to miss out.

MAMATA: You don't want to miss out. And it looks like an extraordinary play that's happening, as if the whole of central London is a stage set.

SOARES: Not only central London, I mean many parts of the country will be having street parties. I think that's really important. They'll be marking the occasion in their own way.

MAMATA: I think that's important to King Charles as well. His whole point with this slimmed down coronation ceremony was to say one day for a ceremony and then two days for big lunches, big helping out. His idea to have us all volunteering on bank holiday Monday is not just a suggestion.

There are lots of charity groups and community groups which have taken on board his idea and they're doing all sorts of things in the local areas. So there's an interesting decentralization of the idea of royal generosity.

SOARES: I'm going to interrupt because I can see just to my left Lionel Richie, of course, the singer. He'll be performing on Sunday in Windsor. Lionel Richie is one of the ambassadors, I was told yesterday, by the CEO of the Prince's Trust. So he has very strong connections to Prince Charles. He's known him for years.

It's wonderful, I've heard this from so many people, to see ordinary members of the community, people who have played a part in their bit, be it helping out during COVID, working for the NHS, being part of the ceremony.

MAMATA: Well, I spent yesterday combing the official coronation website. And I had a little look at the guest list. You're absolutely right. There are heads of state. There are all sorts of deputies and second in command.

And there are also so many people who have been the recipient of one of these sort of medals of merit and honor precisely for their contributions to public life, cultural life, the arts and culture, local communities. It's very interesting that King Charles is stressing all of this.

SOARES: Kenneth Branagh, I think I can see.

MAMATA: Yes, he's looking very distinguished. Everyone's looking sort of terse and serious and yet there's a tremor of joy in the air as well because this is an older king.

SOARES: Yes.

MAMATA: So he is attracting lots of people who are mid-career. And you have this meeting. It's almost like very talented, very substantial people are here to celebrate.

SOARES: And it is slimmed down, 2,200 guests compared to several thousand for the queen. The queen, of course, was in her 20s. The king is in his 70s. At the time, it was only black and white TV. Now we have the age of social media as well.

I'm guessing many people will be, if they're not at home watching it or with their families, they'll probably watching on their phones.

MAMATA: There will be sort of top 10 moments of the coronation. There will be a best of clip. I think there's a strong contingent of people who want to see what everyone was wearing. I personally want to hear from some of the 12 pieces of music that have been commissioned especially for the coronation.

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MAMATA: King Charles is so quirky that he's actually commissioned artists, sketchers and portrait artists to stand along the route.

SOARES: Oh, wow.

MAMATA: Doing a little visual sketch for everybody of what's happening. So he's trying to invest the coronation with all of his sort of quirks that we used to laugh at him for it. And now I think it's all rather special.

Now that's the musician, Nick Cave, sitting down.

SOARES: In terms of music, you mentioned music because we did a report in terms of the music. It's just wonderful how much that side of Charles will come through in terms of the music, the chorale singing. But also he loves opera.

MAMATA: Yes, and he hasn't bowed to total convention.

I always have an impression of King Charles sitting there, going, what are the terms and conditions?

Let me read the small print.

(CROSSTALK)

MAMATA: A dash of opera.

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MAMATA: -- having a little chat. You've got the last several prime ministers in attendance. There's been a little bit of teeth gnashing about not all the PMs have been invited. There was even gossip about having a sort of kettled (ph) area outside the abbey for disgruntled MPs.

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SOARES: I think it's fair to say the general public are quite happy that ordinary people are being invited, because it is about the service and I think it's important to King Charles.

MAMATA: It's about recognizing that he's been in his apprenticeship for 74 years and the day that he dreaded, which is the demise of his mother, is the day that he ascends to the throne.

SOARES: We'll talk much more about this in the next few hours. Thank you very much.

Still ahead right here on the show, we'll have much more, of course, on the coronation, including a view from Westminster Abbey, where guests continue to arrive for this historic ceremony. Do stay right here. We'll be back after this short break.

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SOARES: Welcome back, everyone. It's 8:36 here in London. We have seen the guests start to arrive in the last hour or so, when Westminster Abbey doors opened. The streets of London are also filling up with thousands of people, hoping to witness the coronation of King Charles III.

But many spectators along the parade route will likely have to stand in the rain as showers are expected throughout the day. I don't think that's going to dampen anyone's spirits, by the way.

Viewing screens are set up at several locations in London. It is going to be quite a procession, just spectacular pageantry. And the procession will feature some 7,000 troops, the most seen in any state occasion since Queen Elizabeth II was crowned.

And to mark the historic day, newspapers have published memorable headlines, with some calling this, quote, "a day of dynasty." CNN's Christina Macfarlane joins me from Westminster Abbey.

The doors have been open in the last hour or so. It looks quite busy. I've seen lots of big celebrities.

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I've been keeping a beady eye on proceedings with my trusty pair of binoculars. We are close but we can't quite see faces up close.

There's been a steady stream of arrivals, people wearing hats, traditional dress. It feels a little bit like a wedding. I think the bulk thus far has been members of the 56 Commonwealth countries. There's also been 850 representatives from charitable organizations very close to the king and queen consort's hearts.

We've seen a small number of celebrities thus far, a lot of them U.K.- based. We have seen the actress, Emma Thompson; singer Lionel Richie and also composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, who ,of course, composed the new coronation anthem especially for this service.

For the first time, we also have in attendance 400 young people from charities all over the U.K., who will be watching on, invited by the king and queen consort, from St. Margaret's Church, which is just next door to the abbey.

Then in and around -- where are we? -- about 20 minutes' time, we are going to start to see the first of the heads of state arrive, I believe between 90 and 100 heads of state, who will be coming in a slightly different door.

I don't know if you can see that to the left of my shoulder here. This will, of course, include prime minister Rishi Sunak. We understand seven former prime ministers. President Macron as well. And also Jill Biden, who will be standing in for President Biden, who will not be in attendance. Later today we are expecting the members of the royal family here at

11:00 am entering the great west gate. Now we did have a release of the order of service late last night, which confirmed pretty much what we knew already.

No real new detail except to confirm that Princes Andrew and Prince Harry will not be taking part officially as part of the service, something we kind of expected as non-working royals, although the question as to where the two princes and, in particular, Prince Harry will sit, is still an outstanding question mark, Isa.

So we're watching for news of that very closely in the next two hours.

[03:40:00]

SOARES: Yes, where he will sit.

Will he be, of course, behind me on the balcony, are all questions. But it's filling up very quickly. You mentioned the order of service released this morning. I've been talking to my guests in the last few hours, how the king really wants to make this an inclusive ceremony. Just talk us through how that is going to be reflected in the ceremony today.

MACFARLANE: Well, there are some key differences in this coronation to the one in 1953, his mother's coronation. We know there's going to be a lot shorter service; this just two hours compared to the 3.5 hours of Queen Elizabeth's.

For the first time, we are going to see faith leaders from other faiths involved in the procession of this service and female clergy involved as well. There's also been efforts to kind of scale this down on a cost perspective as well.

We know that the queen consort, Camilla, for the first time in 300 years, will not be issued her own made crown for the coronation. She will be repurposing and using Queen Mary's crown instead, in efforts to keep this ceremony sustainable.

That said, we don't yet know how much all of this will cost. There have been rumors of 100 million pounds. But as I say, very different times from 70 years ago, so we will expect to see a lot of personality reflected, King Charles' personality, reflected in this service.

SOARES: Yes, indeed. It's going to be reflected in many different ways, with so many fewer peers, more members of the public, those who played a part in their communities, be it with the National Health Service, be it during COVID. That is wonderful to see. And I think many people are applauding that.

In the last few minutes, I also saw John Kerry, who is the United States special representative for climate. He's there as well. We also saw Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour Party, the opposition party here. Keep those goggles up. Come back to us as soon as you see anyone else, Christina Macfarlane. Troops are getting ready to position themselves along the ceremonial

route leading to Westminster Abbey. They have been arriving from Waterloo Rail Station, where CNN's Anna Stewart is standing by.

They've been arriving for the past two, three hours.

What train number are we on?

You told me there was going to be 10 trains.

Is that right?

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's all done, Isa. They came and they went. It was extraordinary. It was about two hours. We saw 5,000 members of the armed forces arriving on trains.

It was particularly entertaining to see some of the military bands, with giant drums, trying to fit through the very narrow ticket gates behind me, a logistical feat. That's because today is going to be the largest in terms of ceremony, the largest military event the U.K. has seen since the last coronation, which, of course, was 70 years ago.

We have seen so many military processions, you and I, through the jubilees, through Trooping the Colour, through royal weddings. It will be nothing compared to this. This will be absolutely huge.

The key moments to watch, of course, very soon, you'll start to see some of the armed forces lining that procession route. Then you'll see the carriage being escorted from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey for the ceremony.

But it's the journey back that will be extra special; 4,000 members of the armed forces in procession. I'm sure they're pretty nervous, making sure they get it absolutely right -- Isa.

SOARES: Yes, and they have been practicing. We've seen them rehearse in the wee hours of the night in the last few weeks. So I'm sure they don't want to get any foot wrong on this momentous day. Anna Stewart, thank you very much.

Our special coverage of the coronation of King Charles continues after this very short break.

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[03:45:00]

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SOARES (voice-over): Good morning, everyone. It's 8:48. I hope you have your English Breakfast tea at the ready for what is expected to be a truly glorious and historic moment full of pageantry, as you can imagine. But also a lot of big, significant in terms of religious ceremony. We've been looking at the bands the past several hours. They've been

arriving on 10 trains at Waterloo Station. They're getting ready. They've been practicing for weeks. Westminster Abbey opened its doors about an hour and 10 minutes ago. It's already filling up quite quickly.

We've seen lots of big names arriving. We saw Stephen Fry, Emma Thompson, the actress; Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh. We've also seen the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, Lionel Richie, who's taking part in the concert in Windsor. He is an ambassador for one of the king's funds basically, for the Prince's Trust basically.

And Andrew Lloyd Webber among many others. You can see there is an element of almost like a wedding. George Cross (sic) is a visiting research fellow at King's College London specializing in British coronations.

It does feel like everyone's going to a wedding because they've got beautiful hats and there's not many of those big, draped ceremonial robes you would see.

[03:50:00]

GEORGE GROSS, VISITING RESEARCH FELLOW, KING'S COLLEGE LONDON: It's very much like that. There will be a coronation ring.

You ask the audience to recognize the sovereign, like does anybody have a problem with this moment?

You've got your procession, the arrival. You have vows. So it's very much that marriage feel.

SOARES: How does this one compare, though, because we're talking about pageantry.

But the religious element, has it changed at all?

GROSS: It's changed a lot over 1,000 years. But the core is the same, the anointing, this almost second baptism is remarkably similar to the time of William the Conqueror in 1066. So remarkably traditional sort of the core of it. But the trappings, as you said, feel different.

SOARES: Of course the monarch, King Charles III, wants this to be an accessible, reflective of a more modern Britain.

Do you think, as we're looking at these images, do you think that represents that, George?

GROSS: Yes, I think it does. We know, within the service, we're going to have roles for other faiths. We've seen that even in the guest list of those arriving.

So i think it really does. That's perhaps not surprising. That's happened before. In 1689 is a big reset. The House of Commons were invited for the first time. That was a big step. This will be looked back on as a very inclusive coronation, the first

time other faiths have really had this big role. Even the anointing oil is coming from Jerusalem. It's never come from Jerusalem before. And that's speaking to all the Abrahamic religions.

(CROSSTALK)

SOARES: And different faiths, is that being well received, would you say?

GROSS: I think yes. I get the feeling it has been well received. Put another way, I think it would be surprising had it not been done so. I think it's reflective of where we are as Britain right now.

SOARES: Also reflective, this is something I've been speaking to some of my guests this morning, is the fact that fewer peers, more members of the public, those who played a role in terms of the community during COVID, National Health Service, that's clearly very important to the king.

GROSS: Yes. I think a lot of the things he's pushed forward-- inclusivity, sustainability, these things are -- they're not gimmicks. This is the way he's been all his life. We saw it as Prince of Wales. So it feels more real even now. It would have been odd not to have seen it.

SOARES: In the last few minutes, we saw Jeremy Hunt arrive, Ben Wallace. (INAUDIBLE) as well. There's quite a few names, quite packed. They're starting to arrive very early considering we still have a while to go. I'm guessing for security reasons.

GROSS: For security, getting all placed. Not as early as 1953 but it's a long wait.

SOARES: In terms of Westminster Abbey, in terms of what we'll see in the coming hours, I'm guessing the royal family will sit at the front. We've been talking so much in the last few hours about where will Harry sit. Help me.

Where do you think he will sit first of all?

GROSS: It's very difficult because they've been very quiet about how the royal box is going to feature. So possibly in the royal box. Possibly nearer the front. I'm guessing at this. It's real stargazing. But relatively prominently.

SOARES: You have been studying coronations for years.

What are you looking forward to, George?

GROSS: The music. Definitely the music.

SOARES: A lot of people said that. Thank you very much. The music.

Anything in particular?

GROSS: (INAUDIBLE).

SOARES: Thank you very much, George. Appreciate it.

We'll be back after this short break.

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[03:55:00]

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SOARES: Welcome back. I'm Isa Soares, coming to you live outside Buckingham Palace. Thank you for your company.

You're seeing there inside Westminster Abbey. That is aunt and dair (ph) to U.K. presenters. They're part in presenting and helping and involved the Prince's Trust.

That wonderful bright, that wonderful pink hat, I think that is Katy Perry, the musician. She's taking part in tomorrow's concert, along with many other singers, including Lionel Richie, who is an ambassador for Prince's Trust.

We have seen so many big names -- Stephen Fry, Emma Thompson, Judi Dench, Kenneth Branagh. Also London mayor Sadiq Khan, the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber as well as Keir Starmer. We'll have an eye on those doors for what will be a momentous and historic occasion.

CNN's special coverage of the coronation of King Charles continues after this.