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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Scarlett O'Toole

Shetland actor Douglas Henshall faces backlash over Queen's 'empty coffin' conspiracy

Douglas Henshall has received severe backlash on social media after claiming Queen Elizabeth II' s body is not in her coffin.

The Shetland actor, who played DI Perez in the BBC programme, questioned whether mourners would still be queueing if they "knew that the Queen isn't in that coffin".

Writing on Twitter, the 56-year-old said: "Do you think the Queue would be so long if people knew that the Queen isn’t in that coffin? Or do they know and it’s just symbolic?"

Some of Douglas' followers were left furious over the comment and asked him not to "destroy" the experience for mourners with his "scepticism".

The TV star insisted it was a "genuine question", as he worried about the security risk involved.

Douglas is well-known for his role as DI Perez (BBC/ITV Studios/Mark Mainz)

One person replied: "Douglas, please stopping spreading lies and conspiracy theories like this. You're better than this."

Another said: "Whether she is in there or not, this us a social necessity for every person there to show their respect. Please don't destroy this experience for them with scepticism."

A third fan commented: "Dougie if your going to tweet stuff like this at least provide something to back it up. Without actually providing links to your claim it’s just you sounding off."

"Another shocking tweet you are having a nightmare recently," penned another.

The actor responded to some fans (Twitter)

After being questioned by his followers about if Her Majesty's body was in the coffin, Douglas said: "I don’t know obviously, but I can’t imagine she would be purely on the grounds of security if nothing else."

Mourners have been queueing to see the Queen lying-in-state in Westminster Hall to pay their final respects, before her funeral service at 11am on Monday.

Tens of thousands of people lined the streets awaiting their turn to see her coffin, with many others from around the world tuning in on the live stream.

You can leave your tributes to Queen Elizabeth II here.

The Queen's funeral will take place on Monday (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

On the live stream, mourners were seen walking down the steps to the Queen's coffin before pausing to thank her for her 70 years service to the United Kingdom and the 14 Commonwealth realms.

When Westminster Hall was first opened to mourners at 5pm on Wednesday, the queue stretched 2.5 miles all the way to London Bridge.

By the following morning, it had grown to three miles, beginning from Albert Embankment and runs along Belvedere Road behind the London Eye.

Officials expect more than 750,000 people to visit the coffin before viewings close on Monday, prior to the Queen's state funeral at 11am.

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