Susanna Reid has shared a telling detail about the Queen after one of her beloved dogs died weeks before her own death. On Monday the nation and the world watched as Queen Elizabeth II was laid to rest after she died 'peacefully' at Balmoral, aged 96, on September 8.
The Queen's state funeral saw the royal family among 2,000 dignitaries from across the world and other specially invited guests as they paid their final respects to the late monarch in a poignant service before she was later laid to rest at St George's Chapel in Windsor.
On Tuesday, Good Morning Britain's Susanna shared how the show had gone through a 'transition' since yesterday morning when they hosted the programme live from outside Westminster Abbey. She and co-host Ben Shephard chatted about the 'overwhelmingly emotional' occasion and looked back at some of the key moments from the historic event.
This included the moving moment the late monarch's beloved corgis, Muick and Sandy, were brought out from Windsor Castle for the procession of the Queen's coffin down the Long Walk to St George's Chapel for the committal.
Hugo Vickers, a royal correspondent, said the Queen was kind to everyone she met but had a particular soft spot for her corgis. Susanna said her heart broke at seeing her current pets stand on the sidelines to say a final farewell to their owner, who owned more than 30 corgis, with many of them direct descendants from Susan, who was given to her as an 18th birthday present by her parents in 1944.
Those watching the proceedings were also left emotional as the Queen's favourite horse, Emma, was also brought out to stand at the side of Long Walk. Recalling a conversation had about the corgis, Susanna said: "[The Queen's] favourite corgi, Candy, had died not long ago at Balmoral and the tradition is that the corgis, wherever they die, whatever residency they die, that's where they're buried.
"You would normally have expected Candy to be buried at Balmoral but the Queen requested Candy be buried at Windsor. It wasn't long before the Queen died and you get the sense that the Queen loved her dogs and it was so sweet of her, and telling, that she wanted Candy to be with her when she died."
Hugo added the Queen's dogs had their preferences with staff and would often turn up their noses at anyone who wasn't the monarch herself. He said: "The corgis wouldn't talk to a particular person because, which the Queen admitted herself, they're snobs. They're a very good judge of character."
Candy, however, was actually a Dorgi - a cross between a dachshund and a Welsh corgi. It has been reported that the dog sadly died soon after the Queen arrived in the Scottish Highlands at the beginning of summer. It is believed she surprised her close staff by making the decision to fly the loyal dog's remains to London to be buried in Windsor with her other long-term pet, Vulcan, who passed away in 2020.
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