HM The Queen
Instead of trying to talk myself out of writing this post I did the opposite and talked myself into it given I don’t want to blur the lines between my personal life and that of my life documented in the book ‘The Lost Boys of Soho’. But I felt it was post worth given the brief mention in the book of one of the customers being Her Majesty’s personal hairdresser. But more so on 26 August 2022 in the post titled ‘Diagnosis Lockdown’, I shared how The Queen in her Covid-19 address to the nation encouraged and reassured me in the immediate days after receiving my HIV diagnosis. We have heard the phrase ‘she was a constant’ in our lives and for most, including myself this is true.
When the initial news broke that the Queen’s doctor was concerned for her health I was just about to start recording ‘Spillin’ the Tea with Gloria: The Lost Boys’. By the time I finished recording and while working on my computer with BBC news on in the background broke the news The Queen had died as the flag was being lowered on Buckingham Palace before the screen went blank. I stood up and made my way to the TV set and my reaction was caught on my in-home CCTV which is a bit cringing, but in the digital age is a historic moment in my life captured. As my grandparents had died before I was born, I guess The Queen was always a figure that reassured the nation and me in times of crisis but more frequently a means of bringing people together in celebration.
I had seen The Queen twice in person at the annual Trooping the Colour and have good memories from the Golden, Diamond, and most recently the Platinum jubilees. I also had cause to receive a letter from her majesty in 2009 and much of my family had served the Queen & country in the military in a range of capacities. My father served 14 years as a lance corporal in the British Army and my uncle in the Scots Guards frequently guarded the Queen in Buckingham Palace and other Royals at St. James Palace.
I enjoyed being mischievous as a child folding the Queen’s face on bank notes to make what looked like ‘the Queen’s bum’ and in later life tuned into The Royal Variety and never missed the tradition of the Christmas speech at 3pm. Like most, Elizabeth II was the only monarch I’d known, and during her reign to have been the most accessible monarch of all those my ancestors lived through before me. Although my 8x Gt. Grandfather William Hampson was a Yeoman to HM King Charles II (1671-1685) and was rewarded with land.
CCTV: Some Snivelling, snorting and sharp intake of breath.
TUESDAY 13 SEPTEMBER 2022
As The Queen made the journey from Edinburgh to London I cancelled my plans and decided to head down to The Mall to take in the mood and atmosphere that I had seen on television. I bought a tent and a flask with plans to camp out on The Mall overnight securing a spot at the front to get an unobscured view of the Procession on Wednesday. Arriving at 14:00hrs I sat making friends along the railings at the top of The Mall close to Buckingham Palace with some die-hard royal superfans camping out. While I’d come to pay my respects, I had essentially come to gawp. A police officer whispered that we were in the wrong spot. If we wished to see the late Queen arrive at the palace in the state hearse, then we should head to Constitution Hill. There was a mad rush, mainly of pensioners with hiking sticks and collapsible chairs who I followed from behind before naturally overtaking them wondering if their hips & knees would hold out to Constitution Hill.
BUCKINGHAM PALACE: HM King Charles & HM the late Queen arriving in London
When I arrived at the top of Constitution Hill the road was closed, and the media had gathered with the general public. I headed over to Wellington Arch and sat behind the railings of the roundabout looking onto Picadilly. It was 5 hours later when Her Majesty passed by in the dark in the state hearse. The noise of the traffic fell silent due to the outriders clearing the road, followed by the silence of those gathered in anticipation of catching sight of the hearse to then break into spontaneous applause and cheers. As my video captures, I was within close proximity of Sloth from the film ‘The Goonies’.
I then headed back to The Mall to resume my spot by camping out for the night, although not alone as after his shift Lost Boy Rudy was coming to join me. As I walked down Buckingham Palace Road I went to cross the road at the Royal Mews gate when I stopped to allow a vehicle to leave, the empty state hearse with its interior lights still lit. While I had asked myself earlier if coming out to see the Queen was perhaps a little ghoulish, sight of the empty hearse with my face within a lickable distance of the glass viewing pane made me feel this was a little too much. As I continued, I again stopped at the Queen’s Gallery side gate to allow a minibus to reverse out onto the road. As it reversed to head in the direction of Wellington Barracks I saw guards in their red tunics leaning against the windows filled with condensation. It was clear the boys had been the pallbearers for the Queen arriving at Buckingham Palace and were heading back to the barracks having fulfilled their duty.
WEDNESDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2022
As midnight passed the tent went up on The Mall and the tea was poured as I and Rudy took refuge from the pouring rain. The focus was on resting our legs as we knew there would be many hours standing and waiting by morning when the crowds would start to gather.
As I and Rudy chatted about the real-life Lost Boy’s he interrupted by saying “Will, when I got the tube this morning, I was stopped by five different people who said I was really handsome”! I laughed almost pissing myself and pleaded for him to stop. But with a straight face, Rudy stated he found it an inconvenience as he was almost late for work. He is a handsome little shit, but I do question what world he lives in or if perhaps he knows how to get a reaction from me and I am yet to cotton on.
It was a bonus if amongst all the hustle and bustle of The Mall if we could nod off and catch a few Zzz’s. Although The Mall is not for sleeping especially as preparations were ongoing for the Queen’s coffin procession. Contractors continued throughout the night to deliver barriers, porta-loos, vehicle blockers with a continuation of road sweepers cleaning the road. I then got the scent of disinfectant as they scrubbed The Mall by hand with brooms by pouring disinfectant on the road surface.
Lost boy Rudy did manage to nod off for a short period as I lay observing the action outside through the tent’s open door when he started to snore. Rudy had come straight from work and after the procession was heading back into work and I didn’t envy him at all.
THE MALL: A tent with a very royal view
Our neighbours on either side whiled away the hours with talk of the Queen, one having met her on two occasions. And then a debate ensued regarding Princess Diana which seemed to have opposing views and became quite heated. On the other side, a group was doing live stream videos and seemed more interested in the gifts they received from viewers which had a monetary value as to the reason they claimed they were documenting the event for those unable to make it in person in the first instance.
Rudy woke at 05:30 hrs and I suggested he start to pack his bag and get himself ready for the eventuality that the Police and/or a steward would be along shortly asking us to pack away our tent. He did complain about my constant reminders and stated, “I am having a lie in”. At spot on 07:00 hrs I was standing outside the tent when a policeman asked everybody individually to take down their tents and he didn’t mess about as he was back literally 2 minutes later stating the same again in a more assertive tone.
Then as I was coaxing Rudy out of the tent with the promise of some breakfast bars & flapjack a TV camera and a light was thrust in my face. I was told, not asked, that they were filming for a German television news channel. As I and Rudy had camped overnight, they wanted to ask how our night had been and, ‘why’ we had camped out. The light was so bright I was somewhat stunned but managed to make a coherent response, I think. Rudy was pissing himself laughing in the tent once they left to which I had to then reassure the policeman who had returned that the tent would be collapsed forthwith.
Rudy stood supporting himself on the railings saying he didn’t think he would make it to the end and instead wanted to go home and get into bed. I didn’t blame him and said if he didn’t think he could manage the further 7-hour wait then he should go home. But the lure of catching sight of Prince Harry was enough to convince him to stay, he has quite the crush apparently. I am not sure why I was surprised; only Rudy would use a solemn occasion to drool over alleged eye candy.
As I was fighting to fold the pop-up tent away Rudy leaned against the barrier in fear of breaking a fingernail. He then taught me the lingo of today’s youth when he asked “Will, is my hair rusty”? I thought he was referring to the dubious shade of ‘auburn’ he’d dyed it. But Rudy clarified that the word “rusty” in urban speak means messy and/or tired. Well, I took every opportunity to use this new term where possible when referring to Rudy. As I collapsed the tent I exclaimed “cor, this tent smells rusty”! Rudy was not amused, and I suspect I’d come to the age where I was not too dissimilar to an embarrassing parent trying to be hip.
We spent the next 7 hours standing against the barrier and as each hour passed, we became more crushed against the barrier, and people from behind pushed to the front for a good view which really rattled my fellow Brit’s. It was amazing how many people standing behind us declared they had a physical disability and needed to be permitted to the front to hold onto the rail of the barrier for support. But as we stood, we got a glimpse of HM King Charles III and later Camilla driving past in their cars. What was noticeable was when they passed by, they didn’t evoke that same magical giddiness that Queen Elizabeth did. So much so that I overheard fellow Brit’s behind me stating they wished him well but were just not drawn to him as King.
KING: Charles heading to the Palace 10:32am
CAMILLA: Heading to the Palace at 13:46
As I and Rudy tried to while away the hours, we spoke to others around us who were also here to witness history. I then got tongues wagging when the TV crew from earlier made it’s way through the 7 deep crowd explaining he was approaching me to do a “LIVE TV interview” and not pushing his way to the front. I looked at Rudy who was laughing at me rolling my eyes with that sense of English embarrassment.
None of this was arranged and again the presenter Florian Danner of PULS 24 just said he would be approaching me in a few minutes for a LIVE interview and off he went asking the crowd to allow him through when he returned. I didn’t mind but I felt under-qualified to talk about the late Queen when I was surrounded by my elders. Although I realised the spectacle might be the fact we had camped out overnight which was really to avoid the crowds you usually get at Trooping the Colour.
Rudy was laughing his tits off while those around us enquired as to ‘who I was’? When I shared, I was “nobody” they inquired as to why I had been selected and they had not. But my main concern was ‘how did I look’? The presenter had a face full of slap and was a radiant shade of Florida orange and here I was having been awake 29 hours. Of which 22 hours had been spent on the pavement of The Mall not to mention in a cold damp tent with Rudy’s rusty bum hole. Given limited amenities, I’d only given my face a going over with a wet wipe. But I think I did alright.
An immediate and respectful silence fell the moment the band started to play and the guns fired from Green Park. As the procession came off the Victoria monument the crowd around me, including me looked at each other with visible tears in our eyes in acknowledgment of what we were about to witness.
The moment the band passed in front of me and the late Queen’s carriage I removed my hat and bowed my head as a huge wave of internal emotion took hold. The royal standard and the imperial state crown sparkled resplendently in the September sun.
While the occasion was somber there was a sense of recognition that the procession was worthy of a monarch who had given 70 years of service, 39 of which were in my own lifetime. A life well lived by a Queen who lived until the age of 96 and as the gun carriage passed me by, I could only thank her majesty and as she long reigned over us, I bid “long may you rest” as her carriage rolled into the distance down The Mall.
