Reflections upon the Funeral of HRH Queen Elizabeth

 Week is almost over with things moving more towards where they were before just over a fortnight ago following the sad but beautifully executed funeral of Her Majesty on Monday, choreographed to a tee with immaculately turned out people performing the ceremonial roles. So british.

I was with my parents who could remember George VI's funeral in February 1952 reading accounts as at that point neither had television at home although by June of 1953 and the Queen's Coronation Dad had got television with pictures on the one and only BBC channel from Birmingham and Mum saw it at a cousins who had a set.

This time sat together having prepared a light midday meal so no one would miss much I was in my green jersey, grey shorts and grey with green bars turn over socks, a nod towards Cubs without going the whole nine yards just looking like a kid following it as they talked about the past.

For me it didn't just bring back memories of the Queen Mothers Funeral on April 9th 2002 but Prince Philip's outside of those family funerals I attended when I was younger so I could understand what Prince George and Princess Charlotte would of been feeling.

These things are a bit hard to get your head around when you're young.

Photo credits: BBC/PA

A nation mourns

We did not touch upon the developing news on Thursday as last weeks entry went to press simply because things were changing that rapidally so it was on the other blog earlier this week we touched upon the death in the afternoon of thursday September 8 of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth at Balmoral.

There was a special on CBBC by Blue Peter looking at her role and her appearences on the show itself such when she was awarded the Gold Badge.

Indeed reports since showed even some of her family were not able to arrive at her bedside before her reported death and that in effect there was a news embargo upon issuing it until the royals all knew having a family member working at ITN News.

As a Monarch she was very hard working, well prepared knowing who about the people she was to meet and the topics that would be discussed and very friendly even where sometimes protocol can trip one up when it comes to how exactly you engage with her.

She was the longest serving monarch we have had - many of us have only known her - seeing out some 15 Prime Ministers in her time.

The Royal family is just that - a family whose only major difference to us is they are born to serve - and I prefer to look upon her death as that of a girl who became a woman who reigned, who had a family we all followed, making scrap books of as children who themselves had children that we all knew.

In later years we saw the girl within with her jokes, those timeless expressions as things just turned comic and not least the great Paddington Bear sketch she recorded for her 70th Jubilee we only celebrated in early June.

Today we have our new King, Charles III having been proclaimed across Great Britain and Northern Ireland plus the realms and territories who will do his very best to follow in his Mother's footsteps and we give our thanks to her.

God Save the King.