It's been, to say the least, quite a few days. However you marked it – a street party, a family do, maybe sneaking in a barbecue.
It was the perfect British Bank Holiday, wasn’t it?
A batting collapse at Lords, sketchy weather, travel chaos.
Really, it’s what we’re all about.
It’s not perfect, but for all its faults it’s a beautiful country.
And at the heart of it is Her Majesty. It’s been said many times, in many places, but the Queen is not just part of the fabric of this country – she is the fabric.
The world is turbulent, politicians come and go.
But she has been a constant. Calm, measured, compassionate. The unmoving centre in a changing world.
However fraught and frenetic times have been, the country has been able to look towards her.
And this four-day break has been the perfect way for us to show her what she means to us – not just the country – the world.
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Heads of state paid tribute. Visitors came from all corners of the globe to show their respect.
Hundreds of thousands of people headed to the capital, street parties were held across the land.
We decorated houses, hung out the bunting.
In this shining moment, the whole country came together – and we came together for Her Majesty.
Last night, her son and heir The Prince of Wales paid an emotional tribute to the monarch.
“You are our Head of State”, he said. “You are also our mother.”
A simple, touching phrase that summed up the country’s relationship to its sovereign.
She has always been there for us. A leader, a constant, guiding us through the hardest of times. A mother.
At the height of the pandemic in 2020, she used her Christmas message to tell us: “We’ll meet again.”
And we did, didn’t we? It was difficult, we lost people, it was a mess. But we got through it.
We met again. On The Mall, in the streets, in the pubs, in our homes, all across the land.
United, in our love for a woman who loves us so, who has given her life to our care.
For a few shining days in June, we came together for the best of reasons.
A country so often divided united in gratitude, respect, and love.
