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Queen’s coffin procession: Full route and best viewing points in London

Late monarch’s body will be carried from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall on Wednesday

Matt Mathers
Sunday 18 September 2022 17:15 BST
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People begin queuing to see Queen Elizabeth II's coffin in London

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The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II will arrive in London on Tuesday after 24 hours of lying in rest in Edinburgh.

At around 3pm, Her Majesty’s body - accompanied by her only daughter, Princess Anne - will be flown from the Scottish capital to RAF Northolt, west London.

The coffin will then be driven from the airfield to Buckingham Palace, the monarch’s main residence in the capital. It will remain there overnight before the procession starts again on Wednesday.

The coffin is scheduled to leave the palace at 2.22pm on Wednesday.

From there it will make its way along The Mall Horse Guards Road, across Horse Guards Parade and onto Whitehall to Parliament Square and into the Palace of Westminster.

King Charles III and other senior royals will follow the coffin as it makes its way through London.

Carried by a gun carriage of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, the coffin will arrive at the Palace of Westminster at 3pm.

Her Majesty the Queen will then lie in state until Monday, 19 September - the day of her funeral.

Route of Queen’s coffin from Buckingham Palace to Palace of Westminster
Route of Queen’s coffin from Buckingham Palace to Palace of Westminster (PA Graphics)

Members of the public will be allowed to visit to pay their respects while the Queen lies in state, although mourners have been warned there could be 35-hour long queues.

Some people have already started waiting on the banks of the Thames near parliament, hoping to get a spot on Monday.

All processions and services will be broadcast on national TV and radio. There will be a screening of the events in Hyde Park for those who want to watch the events.

Access to all sites is free and the viewing areas and screening sites will open at 11am on 14 September.

It is also possible to watch the lying in state procession in person from ceremonial viewing areas, which also open at 11am.

An early morning rehearsal for the procession of Queen Elizabeth’s coffin from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state until her funeral on Monday (Danny Lawson/PA)
An early morning rehearsal for the procession of Queen Elizabeth’s coffin from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state until her funeral on Monday (Danny Lawson/PA) (PA Wire)

Capacity will be limited and people will be admitted in order of their arrival time. Those who leave the viewing areas may not be allowed to re-enter.

The full list of viewing areas and the closest train station is as follows:

  • Green Park side of The Mall (Piccadilly Circus, London Underground)
  • St James’s Park side of The Mall and Horse Guards Road (Victoria
  • London Underground, National Rail. This station has step-free access)
  • Horse Guards Parade ground (Charing Cross, National Rail)
  • Whitehall (West), Parliament Street (West), and Great George Street (Victoria
  • London Underground, National Rail
  • This station has step-free access.
  • Whitehall (East), Parliament Street (East), and Bridge Street (Embankment, London Underground)

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