The Queen’s coffin will arrive back in the capital tonight and take slow 15-mile journey across London to Buckingham Palace.
Thousands are expected to line the route as the State Hearse travels from RAF Northolt to the Bow Room, where it will rest overnight, ahead of a day of high ceremony and symbolism on Wednesday.
With hundreds of thousands predicted in London in the days ahead, this evening is expected to be the easiest way to pay your respects.
The Queen’s coffin will leave St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh in late afternoon, accompanied by the Princess Anne.
The 40-minute flight from Edinburgh airport to RAF Northolt is expected to arrive in the capital around 7pm. It will be greeted by a guard of honour formed by the Queen’s Colour Squadron, an RAF regiment.
An enormous security operation is already in place along the route, with the cortege moving slowly along the A40, traditionally one of the busiest roads into west London. There are many bridges along the route where people are expected to watch.
Once in central London, it will travel down Eastbourne Terrace, Lancaster Gate and the Bayswater Road before rounding the iconic Marble Arch and progressing down Park Lane.
The hearse will then cross Hyde Park Corner before journeying down Constitution Hill, which runs adjacent to the Buckingham Palace gardens. It will then pass through Centre Gate Centre Arch of Buckingham Palace.
The Queen will spend one final night in her London residence before she will be taken in procession to Westminster Hall on Wednesday afternoon, a full rehearsal of the huge-scale state occasion taking place between 3am and 6am this morning.
Metropolitan Police have actioned a “highly complex’’ policing plan in the capital, the biggest ever seen in the UK.
In terms of complexity and scale, it will dwarf the £5.4 million spend on arrangements for the Queen Mother’s funeral in 2002.
Not only is there a new King and new prime minister but London also has a new police boss, Met Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley swearing his oath to the King yesterday, the first senior police officer to do so.
“We have been preparing for this for many, many years,” he said. “There are some very diligent and determined people who put a lot of effort into this.
“I have a lot of trust and confidence in the fantastic police officers who are going to support this event. We are going to be putting thousands of officers into this because of the level of security required and the millions of people whom want to pay their respects.”
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