[imagesource: Screenshot / BBC]

Queen Elizabeths II’s funeral will take place on Monday, September 19 at Westminster Abbey.

Before then, the public can enter Westminster Hall, where the Queen’s coffin lies in state, to pay their respects and bid their farewells.

Everybody knows the Brits love to form an orderly queue. This is likely the single greatest chance in history for them to show the world why they’re considered untouchable in this regard.

Behold what social media has dubbed #QueueForTheQueen, with live running commentary on the scale of the queue broadcast on websites and live news coverage.

Because the queue is so long, you need to know where to join the back of it. Pushing in is just not done, you see. Britain!

HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN’S LYING-IN-STATE QUEUE UPDATE, 06:36AM, 15 Sept

Queue end is near Blackfriars Bridge

Forecast is partly cloudy

What3words: reveal.nail.papers

Tracker: https://t.co/WImurZpIJW
Plan ahead: https://t.co/eWKx1gHghl
Journey planner: https://t.co/XnDRCfljTD pic.twitter.com/cCjF5Bwyq8

— Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (@DCMS) September 15, 2022

Sure, there’s a live YouTube stream which gives regular updates:

The sheer Britainess of it all is perhaps best summed up by this Twitter thread:

Just to be clear: I don’t mean the purpose of the queue. I don’t mean the outpouring of emotion or collective gried or the event at the end and around the queue or the people in the queue. I mean, literally, the queue. The queue itself. It’s like something from Douglas Adams.

— ❓🦎 (@curiousiguana) September 14, 2022

It needs to be read in its entirety:

Tell us, how does it end?

An official government release backed this up, stating that people are not allowed to bring chairs, camping equipment, sleeping bags, or blankets and “will need to stand for many hours, possibly overnight”.

Naturally, there’s a ‘VIP’ queue for parliamentarians and their families, which allows them to “queue jump” in their own separate, faster-moving line.

Say what now? #QueueForTheQueen pic.twitter.com/gEakj7ZeW4

— Hayley (@Hayshometruths) September 14, 2022

A BBC reporter waited in the queue and divulged more on general decorum and whatnot:

There were no books, no card games and no tablets to keep them occupied, just conversation. It was a theme everyone else seemed to unconsciously follow. No-one was staring at their phone screen and not a single person had plugged their headphones in. There was too much to talk about.

This is the exact opposite of a trip on the London Tube, where making even the briefest of eye contact with a fellow commuter is frowned upon.

A little further along the line, impromptu singalongs of God Save the King broke out and candles were lit to remember the Queen…

Andrew, who flew in from Minnesota on Saturday night, said he felt he had won a “golden ticket” by securing an overnight spot on a bench.

Thanks to austerity measures and budget cuts from the Tory government, somebody likely sleeps on that bench every night and they don’t even have to fly in from abroad.

It’s not how I would choose to spend my Air Miles but you do you, Andrew.

Sky News also sent a correspondent to queue. She said you could pop in and out if necessary under certain circumstances, and added that the wait time was far shorter than she thought it would be:

A pause in the queue is perhaps one of the only points when you can go to the toilet or get something to eat, but there’s no formal system, you count on your neighbour to save your space…

After passing through the airport-style security checks under bright flood lights, we knew we were close.

As we stepped inside Westminster Hall the queue fell silent, it was the moment everyone came for.

At that stage, visitors are not allowed to film, take photos, or use their phones.

They’re also not permitted to bring flowers or any other tribute items and no food or drink can be brought inside.

Perhaps somebody should have given this guard a bite to eat and a Red Bull”

BBC suspends live footage of the Queen’s lying in state, after guard faints. #QueenElizabethII pic.twitter.com/6FUwfwb0qJ

— JackThompson (@Jack_Thompson_8) September 14, 2022

According to The Independent, the incident took place around 1AM on Thursday morning:

The guard was standing at the foot of the late monarch’s casket when he suddenly fell to the floor with a clattering sound…

The soldiers are required to remain completely still at the four corners of the catafalque.

The guards, taken from units including the Sovereign’s Bodyguard, the Household Division and the Yeoman Warders of the Tower of London, rotate around the coffin every 20 minutes, while the total shift for each guard stretches to six hours in length.

I don’t know when last I stood for six hours straight. Sounds horrid.

Let’s part ways with a few funny tweets from the hashtag:

Just found the back of the queue. #QueueForTheQueen pic.twitter.com/k0F88WjCcU

— Parody Prime Minister (@Parody_PM) September 14, 2022

Brits hearing there’s a two and a half mile long queue with a 30+ hour waiting time#QueueForTheQueen pic.twitter.com/OweZ1qywth

— Michael Gooch (@michgooch) September 14, 2022

Sacre bleu, they massively underestimated how long this queue was going to be… #TheQueue #WestminsterHall #QueueForTheQueen pic.twitter.com/3yMFI3MbD9

— Ged Robinson – слава Україні 🇺🇦 (@GedRobinson) September 14, 2022

It’s hard to think of anything more British and fitting than paying tribute to the Queen with the longest queue in history. #QueueForTheQueen

— King Charles III (parody) (@Charles_HRH) September 14, 2022

[sources:bbc&sky&independent]