British authorities suspended queues for more than seven hours on Friday, and queues to pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Hall have reopened due to a surge in numbers.
But officials said Friday afternoon that people may have to queue for more than 24 hours to get to the Queen’s coffin. They said it would be cold at night.
The queue’s real-time tracker said it was “full” earlier in the day as wait times reached 14 hours and the line stretched five miles from Parliament to Southwark Park in south London and then around the park.
Also on Friday, King Charles III and Queen Camilla traveled to Wales after a day out of the public eye. It was their last stop before returning to London for the Queen’s state funeral on Monday.
Lines to Westminster Hall reopen with 24-hour wait
Lines to Westminster Hall reopened after being closed for hours on Friday, where the Queen lay for two days to pay her respects. However, officials said people may have to wait in line for up to 24 hours, possibly in cold nighttime weather, to get to Queen Elizabeth’s coffin.
According to The Weather Channel, the temperature in London will be sunny and sunny in the 60s on Friday, but temperatures could dip into the 50s or below overnight.
The line is about 5 miles long and meanders along the Thames.
Authorities have installed more than 500 portable toilets, while about 1,000 housekeepers and law enforcement officers are on duty at any given time.
Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to pay their respects ahead of Monday’s state funeral.
David Beckham joins team to visit Queen Elizabeth’s coffin
Football superstar David Beckham has joined the miles-long queue waiting to pay his respects to Queen Elizabeth II as she lies in state.
The former England captain was spotted in a line of mourners near the British Houses of Parliament at lunchtime on Friday. He is believed to have joined the queue at 2am and queued with thousands of others for more than 10 hours.
Officials temporarily blocked people from joining the back of the line on Friday after a park at the furthest reaches was full. Arriving people are directed to a waiting area and slowly allowed to join the queue.
tomorrow:David Beckham queued for 12 hours to see Queen Elizabeth II lying in state
Following news of the Queen’s death, Beckham remembered her reign on Instagram, telling his followers how the news had left him “sad”.
“How frustrated we all feel today shows what she means to people in this country and around the world. How much her leadership has inspired us,” he wrote. “How she comforted us in difficult times. She served her country with dignity and grace until her last days.”
King Charles and Queen Camilla visit Wales
King Charles III and Queen Camilla have arrived in Wales for an official visit. The visit begins with a service at Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff and will include a meeting with the Welsh Assembly and a stop at Cardiff Castle.
For more than 50 years before his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died last week, Charles was Prince of Wales – a title that has now passed on to his son Prince William.
The royal couple had previously visited Scotland and Northern Ireland, the two countries that make up the United Kingdom, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II last week at the age of 96.
Lines that see Queen “paused” after reaching capacity
A steady stream of mourners continued on the third day of tributes to Queen Elizabeth II lying in the state at Westminster Hall.
The crowd was the latest manifestation of nationwide grief over the only monarch known to most Britons, who died at her beloved summer resort of Balmoral. 8 years old, 96 years old, ended 70 years of rule.
People were told not to line up to see Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin as the queue was full. British officials said Friday morning that organised lines were full and no one would be allowed to join for at least six hours.
Caroline Quilty of London said she was in line around 4am on Friday.
“I think it’s a moment in history, and if I didn’t come to celebrate it, see it and be part of it, I think I would really regret it,” she said.
The line runs five miles from Parliament to Southwark Park in South London.
The government said the park was now full and queues entered a “pause”, asking mourners to “don’t try to join the queue until it reopens”.
The royal family will hold vigil at Westminster Hall
All eight of Queen Elizabeth II’s grandchildren will be vigil by her coffin on Saturday as it sits in Westminster Hall. King Charles III and his siblings will have a vigil on Friday night.
Prince William and his brother Prince Harry will participate in a 15-minute vigil, officials said Friday. The heir to the throne, William, will stand at the top of the coffin, with Harry at his feet. Both princes, who are veterans, will be in uniform.
Princess Anne’s children Zara Tindall and Peter Philips will also be in attendance. Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, daughters of Prince Andrew; and children of Prince Edward, Lady Louise Windsor and Viscount Severn.
The Queen’s four children will hold a vigil on Friday night.
Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to pay their last respects through coffins during the state’s funeral, which begins on Wednesday and ends on Monday, the day of the Queen’s funeral.
Prince William and Kate greet mourners at Norfolk estate
Prince William and Kate, now the Prince and Princess of Wales, greeted thousands outside Sandringham, the royal estate in Norfolk, on Thursday.
The couple appeared outside the gates of the 20,000-acre estate to watch the flowers bequeathed to Queen Elizabeth II and greet thousands of well-wishers.
William and Kate walked slowly along the metal fence as they took bouquets from the public and spoke to well-wishers.
Crowns and Jewels:What Queen Elizabeth left behind at Windsor Manor
Jane Wells, 54, spoke to William, 40, about how he and brother Prince Harry, 38, walked behind the Queen’s coffin with their father King Charles III and the King’s siblings. Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, where the undercover ceremony began on Wednesday.
Yesterday’s walk was challenging,” Wells said, William said.
“I said how proud his mother would be of him, how hard it was yesterday, because it reminded him of his mother’s funeral,” Wells told reporters afterward.
Sandringham is the monarch’s private resort, a few hours’ train ride northeast of London. This is where the late Queen spent her childhood and where she hosted many of her Christmas family gatherings.
Buckingham Palace announces national silence
Buckingham Palace has announced that there will be a two-minute silence in the UK at the end of the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
The funeral will be held at Westminster Abbey on Monday with around 2,000 guests, including visiting heads of state and other dignitaries on Monday.
From Emperor Naruhito of Japan and King Felipe VI of Spain to US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and the prime ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand, the guest list for the state funeral is a roll call of global power and pomp .
tomorrow:Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral details: When? Will it be on TV?Your question, answered
Following the funeral, the late Queen’s coffin will be transported in a carriage through London’s historic centre.
It will then be taken to a hearse in Windsor, where the Queen will be buried with her late husband, Prince Philip, who died last year.
Contributed by Elise Brisco, Nicole Fallert, Maria Puente and The Associated Press