Queen Elizabeth II, died on Thursday 8 September 2022

[niemeyjt]

Not normally my thing but today I watched the parade with awe at the organisation & precision, especially the young pallbearers.
Hell of a long time for the participants if they needed a jimmy.

Young pallbearers - no prostate issues perhaps?

Why did they not reuse the Land Rover hurse built for Price Philip's funeral?

[ajm]

The land rover only had to travel from Windsor Castle to the chapel. Not from London

[Hotrodder]

I thought Landys were supposed to be reliable.

[Blaze]

Loved the funeral at Westminster Abbey and the committal at Windsor. Very nicely done but what a long day for all the participants...

[Polly]

I don't know who baroness scotland is - is she clergy? There seemed to have been a lot of them there with the same prayer rehashed in 10 ways. I don't know most of the politicos, nor actors. After 31 years in France and no English tv, folk have to be fairly long in the tooth for me to recognise them.

I had to look her up, knew she wasn’t clergy but not much else:

“Patricia Janet Scotland, Baroness Scotland of Asthal, PC, KC (born 19 August 1955), is a British diplomat, barrister and politician, serving as the sixth secretary-general of the Commonwealth of Nations.”

I didn’t enjoy hearing her reading, nor Liz Truss - very fair, one Labour, one Tory. They both needed much more practice at reading well.

Apart from such minor niggles, I thought the whole ceremony was a fabulous and fitting end to Queen Elizabeth’s life. I know there has been regular practising over the years, but the organisation behind the occasion was mind-blowing.

[Chappers51]

I watched the service and I must admit the pomp and ceremony is something the UK excel at. I’m afraid neither the Baroness nor Truss impressed me with their readings. However one can’t fault the organisation of this event- I doubt there’ll be another of this magnitude.

[Pathca]

We’ve been saying that

[Richard]

Besides a small handful of sensible posters I have been disgusted to read some of the extreme left wing republican posts in this thread.
What is it with the majority of British expats to France?
Is being a socialist compulsory?

[niemeyjt]

Not sure it is "the majority of British expats to France"

I started a republican discussion thread and it is still on the first page.

[exile]

@Richard , I agree that some posts have been ill-informed but I think you confuse Monarchists and Republicans with conservatives and socialists. It is perfectly possible to be a socialist Monarchist or a conservative Republican. To mix the two concepts is therefore dangerous and dare I say it rather woolly thinking.

It should not be a complete surprise that people who chose to live in a Republic may not all be the strongest Monarchists. The more so when a number have chosen to take French (Republican) nationality. A degree of antithesis towards the Monarchy might therefore be expected - even in these sad times.

As for socialism, then you have to realise that much of the western European mainland is significantly more left wing than the UK of today. In Germany, the Christian Democratic Party (right of centre) could be seen as being somewhat more left than the old "new Labour" in many of its policies. In fairness it has moved somewhat to the right recently in defence against AfD (Alternatif fuer Deutschland). Similarly Macron's En Marche! party has edged a degree in the right wing policy direction as defence against Le Pen. [There is a disturbing - to me - rise in extreme and extremist, populist politics in a number of European States and conventional parties are tending towards the right rather than face the opposition head on.] Perhaps you find those sorts of moves to your taste.

So that will perhaps explain why you find socialist attitudes displayed in this thread and elsewhere.