The last person to pay their respects at the Queen's public lying in state ceremony after joining the public queue was a serving member of the armed forces.
Chrissy Heerey, an RAF servicewoman, said it was a "real privilege" to be the last person allowed into Westminster Hall to see the late Queen Elizabeth II's coffin early on Monday morning. The lying in state period ended at around 6.30am, just four and a half hours before the funeral is due to begin.
“I was the last person to pay my respects to the Queen and it felt like a real privilege to do that," she said.
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“I’d already been round once, I went in at 1.15 this morning. It’s one of the highlights of my life and I feel very privileged to be here.”
Thousands filed past the coffin between Thursday and the early hours of Monday for their chance to pay their respects to the late monarch.
Once the hall was closed to the public, members of Parliamentary staff and, finally Black Rod Sarah Clarke were the final people to pay their respects. By the end, the flow of mourners passing into Westminster Hall had slowed to a trickle as those at the back of the queue finally reached their destination.
Some were smartly dressed in sombre black coats, while others wore brightly coloured outdoor gear which served as protection against the chilly autumnal night. They passed through the hall in silence, with some pausing for one final look at the only monarch many of them have ever known before exiting into the dawn.
The silence was interrupted only by the changing of the guard every 20 minutes, the sound of military boots on the stone floor echoing off the walls.
The Queen's body will be carried from Westminster hall at 10.35am on Monday morning. It will arrive at Westminster Abbey for the funeral at around 10.52am. The funeral begins at 11am.
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