First Royal fans descend on London ahead of Queen's coffin's arrival as mourners warned of 30-hour queues

12 September 2022, 15:19 | Updated: 13 September 2022, 09:30

London will be 'full' for the first time as millions of people flood the capital to see the Queen's coffin, officials have warned.

The first mourners were pictured gathering in London more than 48 hours before the arrival of Her late Majesty's coffin in the city.

Tents were seen being placed on The Mall this morning as a royal parade continued in Edinburgh.

The Queen's funeral cortege will not arrive in London until Wednesday afternoon but queues of up to 30 hours are already expected, which could stretch back five miles from Parliament, culture secretary Michelle Donelan warned.

Woman explains why she became first in the queue two days early to see the queen when she lies in state in London

The Queen will lie in state in Westminster Hall from Wednesday afternoon until her funeral at Westminster Abbey on Monday morning.

The procession will start at Buckingham Palace at 2.22pm, proceeding along The Mall, Horse Guards Road, across Horse Guards Parade and onto Whitehall to Parliament Square and into the Palace of Westminster.

Cabinet Office staff have predicted between 750,000 and one million people will swell in the capital to mark the occasion.

Photos taken this morning showed the queue line had already been set up at 7am.

Visitors, who must wear wristbands and have been told not to bring tents to line the streets, have been told to dress appropriately.

They must also remain quiet while paying their respects.

A spokesperson for the Mayor of London, said: "The capital is expecting thousands of visitors in the coming days, as people come to pay their respects to Her Majesty The Queen.

"Anticipating unprecedented travel demand in London, Transport for London is working hard to keep our city moving, and to ensure that all those planning to attend the memorial events, can do so safely.

"It’s important that Londoners allow plenty of extra time for their journeys, as roads and public transport in central London will be very busy in the days ahead, with road closures in place.

"London Underground and rail services will be running as normal and are the best ways to get around central London.

"However, Londoners must expect stations in the centre of the city to be busier than usual, and some short-term safety measures such as queuing, closures, non-stopping trains or changes to the way customers enter or exit a station may be put in place.

"Additional TfL Travel Ambassadors will be on hand across the network to answer questions and to provide travel advice to anyone who needs it.

"The Elizabeth line will run a special service with trains every five minutes on Sunday 18 September, to provide additional transport options."

King Charles III on Monday addressed MPs and members of the House of Lords in Parliament, expressing his gratitude as he was presented with a note of condolence by parliamentarians.

He described Parliament as "the living and breathing instrument of democracy”, adding : “I cannot help but feel the weight of history that surrounds us."

The King also quoted Shakespeare in a tribute to his 'beloved mother' as he addressed Parliament for the first time since becoming monarch.

Charles said the late Queen had “set an example of selfless duty which, with God's help and your counsels, I am resolved faithfully to follow.”

“I am deeply grateful for addresses of condolence, which so touchingly encompass what late sovereign beloved mother meant to us all,” he added.

The prediction of unprecedented arrivals in the capital came amid a flurry of anti-monarchists' arrests across the nation.

One 22-year-old woman was charged "in connection with a breach of the peace" in Edinburgh after holding a sign which read: "F*** imperialism, abolish monarchy".

She will now appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, Police Scotland said, without offering further details.

The arrest prompted concern among republican campaigners and free speech activists.

Rachel Johnson responded to the news in a tweet: "What were the grounds for her arrest? How peculiar".