The State Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will take place next Monday (September 19th) at Westminster Abbey, beginning at 11am.
As a mark of respect Hambledon Village Shop will be closed and the Merry Harriers will not open until the early evening.
For shop customers who pre-order their newspapers, these can be collected from outside the shop in the cabinet from 8.30am.
The day of the funeral has been declared a national Bank Holiday.
At 8pm on the evening before (Sunday 18th) there will a minute’s silence at which the public are invited to “come together to observe a national moment…to mourn and reflect on the life and legacy of Queen Elizabeth II”.
Details of how this occasion will be marked in Hambledon will follow.
Members of the public will able to pay their respects to Her Majesty at the Lying-in-State at Westminster Hall from this 5pm this Wednesday (Sept14th). Long queues are predicted as many thousands are expected to file past the Queen’s coffin. The official advice is that it could take many hours to queue, possibly even overnight, so come prepared.
More details can be found here:
The latest round of rail strikes has been called off. All overground and underground trains and buses in the capital are expected to be extremely busy and travellers are advised to check with operators.
Here in Hambledon, many villagers attended the 10am Communion service at St Peter’s yesterday, where prayers were said to mark the passing of the Queen. The service was taken by associate vicar Simon Willetts and a sermon reflecting on the life of the Queen and her dedication to duty and to her faith was delivered by assistant vicar David Jenkins
A Book of Condolence has been opened and is available for all villagers to sign. It can be found just inside the church, which is open every day until dusk.
May I suggest that the book of condolence is moved to the village shop in the next day or so – more footfall
I will ask at the shop. But its hours will limit the availability to sign the book.