London's full: Mourners turned away from procession route after viewing sites hit capacity

19 September 2022, 10:40 | Updated: 19 September 2022, 10:47

Mourners have been turned away from the procession route for the Queen's coffin after London City Hall said viewing sites and footpaths were full.

Officials just after 9am said public viewing areas for the procession of the Queen's coffin from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch were full and that there would be "no entry to any new arrivals."

A statement on Twitter said: "Please follow the advice of stewards and police. If you are in the area or about to arrive, use the dedicated walking route to Hyde Park to watch Her Majesty The Queen's state funeral and procession."

Footage showed crowds of people walking down the streets of central London, where shops have closed as a mark of respect, as they raced to find a spot to view the procession.

Heads of state, prime ministers and presidents, members of European royal families and key figures from public life will gather at the abbey.

Today marks the climax of what is being regarded as the biggest security operation the UK has ever seen, surpassing the operation for the Platinum Jubilee weekend and the London 2012 Olympics, which saw up to 10,000 police officers on duty per day.

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The Queen's coffin is set to leave Westminster Hall, where she has lain in state since Wednesday, at 10.44am and make its way to Westminster Abbey.

A bearer party from The Queen's Company, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, will lift the coffin from a wooden frame at 10.35am and carry it to the Royal Navy's State Gun Carriage by the North Door of Westminster Hall.

The carriage, drawn by 142 Royal Naval personnel, will be followed by the King, other members of the royal family, the King's Household and the Household of the Prince of Wales.

The King and the Queen Consort will walk immediately behind the coffin, followed by the Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke of York, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, and the Prince and Princess of Wales.

The procession will arrive at the West Gate of Westminster Abbey at 10.52am and the coffin will be lifted off the carriage by the bearer party and carried inside.

The state funeral service, starting at 11am, will be conducted by the Very Rev David Hoyle, Dean of Westminster.

Before the service the tenor bell will be tolled every minute for 96 minutes, reflecting the years of the Queen's life.

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At 12.15pm, the coffin will be taken in procession from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch and then travel to Windsor.

The hearse will then travel in procession to St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle via the Long Walk, after which a televised committal service will take place in St George's Chapel at 4pm.

The Dean of Windsor will conduct the service, with prayers said by the Rector of Sandringham, the Minister of Crathie Kirk and the Chaplain of Windsor Great Park.

The chapel's choir will sing and after the penultimate hymn, the imperial state crown, the orb and the sceptre will be moved from the Queen's coffin to the altar.

After the final hymn, the King will place the Queen's Company Camp Colour of the Grenadier Guards on the coffin, while the Lord Chamberlain breaks his Wand of Office and places it on the coffin.

The Dean of Windsor will say a psalm and the Commendation while the Queen's coffin is lowered into the royal vault.

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After this, the Sovereign's Piper will play a lament and the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will pronounce the blessing, before the congregation sings the national anthem.

Ahead of the service, Mr Welby said: "We come together to give thanks for a long life, lived in service to her people and her saviour, Jesus Christ."

Later in the evening, there will be a private interment service with senior members of the royal family, where the Queen will be reunited with her beloved husband the Duke of Edinburgh.

The Queen's final resting place will be the King George VI memorial chapel, an annex to the main chapel where her mother and father were buried, along with the ashes of her sister, Princess Margaret.

Philip's coffin will move from the royal vault to the memorial chapel to join the Queen's.