A nurse who was invited to attend the Queen's funeral thought the phone call she received from royal officials was a hoax.
MBE-winning Nancy O'Neill, from Bradford, was so stunned to receive the invitation to the Monday event she thought she was being pranked.
Nancy, 60, received the third highest ranking Order of the British Empire as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours this year for more than 41 years working as a nurse and efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic.
After receiving a call from the cabinet office she was expecting to hear when she could pick up her award, but instead she was invited to the Queen's funeral.
She will be alongside 2,000 politicians, dignitaries and world leaders.
During her time with the NHS at the Bradford District and Craven CCG Ms O'Neill was described as a "huge asset" to the NHS.
Speaking about the overwhelming experience, she told the MailOnline : "It still feels pretty surreal.
"My family and grandchildren are very excited and until I am sitting in a seat at Westminster Abbey it won't seem real.
"I would not have expected to have been selected in a million years.
"I was thinking of queueing to see the Queen lying in state and taking my grandchildren down, going past the coffin and participating in the mourning process.
"When she died I was surprised at the depth of feeling I had for someone I had never met. The nation as a whole feels so sad.
"I've got another family funeral on the Tuesday for an elderly relative who died on the same day as the Queen.
"I think it will be a strange and emotional day. It will be something historic.
"History will weigh heavy throughout it. There will be an element of excitement...it will be a mixture of emotions.
"Kings and Queens from most countries will be flying in, politicians that you see on the telly and see on the news."
When asked about if she was looking forward to seeing any dignitaries or otherwise in particular she said there was no one that came to mind, adding she did not expect to make small talk given it will be a sombre occasion.
Nancy added: "But no one does pomp and ceremony like the British. It will be a spectacular event and I hope it will do justice to the woman and monarch she was."
The funeral is expected to draw in more than four billion viewers worldwide.
Ms O'Neill added: "It crossed my mind the phone call could be a hoax. But then I thought how exciting and what an honour it is. That was the sum of the total conversation.
"I didn't tell anybody for a few days and didn't know if I was allowed to tell anyone.
"When I did they all said wow that's amazing, which was my reaction too.
"My grandchildren can't wait to tell their friends when they go to school on Tuesday."
