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Chronicle Live
National
Ellie Fry & Catherine Furze

Who was that tall man in Queen's funeral procession today?

As the Queen's coffin travelled to Windsor Castle during the state funeral today, one man stood out in the procession, prompting people to try to find out who the insanely tall man' was.

The incredibly tall mourner is in fact Matthew Magee, a former assistant private secretary to the late monarch. Standing at a huge 7ft 2in, he would have dwarfed the late Queen who was only 5ft 3in tall. He was given to the role in 2018 and is often mistaken for the Queen's most dedicated member of staff, Paul Whybrew, charmingly nicknamed Tall Paul., according to The Mirror

Tall Paul, who confusingly is smaller than Mr Magee at 6ft 4in, was one of only three of Her Majesty's male domestic staff invited to join the cortege from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall on Wednesday last week. He was known as Tall Paul in contrast to another of the Queen's footmen, Paul Burrell, who was known as Small Paul.

Read more: Why the Queen was also known as London Bridge - and Sharon

But standing nearly a foot taller than Tall Paul, Matthew Magee certainly caught people's eyes in the procession earlier today.

People on Twitter have been asking about the Royal staff member's height, with one writing: "Who is this insanely tall man? Is this the royal Slenderman?" Another social media user echoed the question, saying: "Anyone know who the exceedingly tall man is?" while a third wrote "I don't know who he is, but he is a very tall man."

Mr Magee was also formerly the Duke of Kent Prince Edward's private secretary, but The Sun reports that he was chosen to work with the Queen because of his “brilliant brain”. A royal insider told the publication at the time: “He is a smashing guy with a great sense of humour and the Queen will love working with him on a daily basis.”

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