Graham Norton says the ‘gorgeous’ public reaction to Queen’s death is ‘not rational but it’s genuine’

Thousands of mourners have been queuing to pay tribute to the late monarch as she lies in state ahead of the state funeral

Graham Norton has reflected on the public’s reaction to the Queen’s death.

Thousands of members of the public have been queuing to pay tribute to the late monarch as she lies in state in Westminster Hall, ahead of the state funeral on Monday 19 September.

At points, the line to Westminster Hall at the House of Parliament stretched five miles across London.

A recent YouGov poll of more than 3,200 British adults found that some 44 per cent of people have shed tears or welled up in the wake of the Queen dying.

In a new interview in The Sunday Times Culture magazine, Norton – an Irishman who has been living in Britain for nearly four decades – talked about how he has found the past week of national mourning humbling.

“It’s gorgeous to see the way people respond,” he said. “It’s not rational. But it’s genuine.”

Earlier this year, the presenter, 59, married his partner (thought to be filmmaker Jonothan McLeod) at Bantry House in West Cork, Ireland, near where Norton grew up.

Graham Norton in 2019 (Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)

Norton has hosted The Graham Norton Show for the BBC since 2007. He also records a programme for Virgin Radio – on which he recently interviewed JK Rowling.

Norton’s new novel Forever Home will be published this September.

Follow the latest updates following the death of Queen Elizabeth II here