The Queens funeral will take place on Monday 19 September and almost every broadcasting service will air it, except Channel 5.
Instead of broadcasting the funeral, Channel 5 will be showing The Emoji Movie followed by Stuart Little and Ice Age 3. The channel will be the only mainstream public service broadcaster that will not be airing the funeral or documentaries about the late Monarch on Monday.
The broadcaster has chosen to show children's films throughout the day instead, as schools and businesses are closed with many parents online have applauded this decision. One wrote: "Channel 5 deserve a lot of respect for this. Airing an entire day's worth of kid and family friendly content to give us a break from wall to wall bleakness that most of us don't care about is a great move. I might even break my complete disinterest in the Emoji movie and watch"
Another penned: "Good. Something for my eldest with additional needs, whose anxiety is currently in a tailspin with constant death and funeral talk, on TV radio and every shop or building we go to. We can set up a quiet area for him while the rest of us watch." A third said: "I think that's quite a good thing. Let's face it, no-one's choosing 5 to watch the funeral, so why not give the kids something where Netflix etc isn't an option?"
Channel 4 will air an obituary for The Queen at 10.55am, then the two minutes silence, followed by a repeat of a 1953 documentary on The Queen's Coronation. They will then air the Vera Lynn film 'We'll Meet Again.' BBC One will be airing the funeral from 8am to 5pm, with the same broadcast being shown on BBC Two with British sign language interpretation.
All of ITV and Sky's channel will be simulcasting the funeral as well. CBBC will also be showing films on Monday as an alternative to the funeral, airing movies like 'The Boy in the Dress' and the timeless 'Wallace and Gromit: The Wrong Trousers.'
Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral at Westminster Abbey will be attended by world leaders, including President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, and representatives from across the Commonwealth of Nations—most of which were part of the former British Empire.
The funeral is expected to be one of the most-watched royal events in history, with billions of people around the world tuning in to watch the late monarch be laid to rest. Prince Philip’s funeral was viewed by more than 13 million people in the UK last year, while Diana’s funeral on 6th September 1997 was watched by more than 31 million British audience members.
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