Duke’s funeral showed the best of Britain

LAST Saturday Britain once again showed the world just what we are really very good at, namely state occasions.

Sad though funerals are, the laying to rest of the Duke of Edinburgh was, despite Covid restrictions, brilliantly staged before a mammoth worldwide TV audience.

The immaculate turn-out of the forces, the precision of the drill, the timing of programme to the precise second, proceeded without a discernible hitch.

The funeral ceremony, its style and presentation being dictated by Covid, was very moving with some superb singing by practised and gifted performers.

I felt very sad to see Her Majesty, The Queen, sat all alone in her pew, but this is precisely what other mourners have had to endure for the last 15 months, and she was obviously determined she would cope in exactly the same way as her subjects.

The example that Her Majesty set should help those who will have to face similar circumstances in the months to come, for Covid is not going to go away.

Hopefully, with more and more people getting vaccinated, such suffering will lessen, but our Queen has set a benchmark for fortitude in the face of adversity.

Sad though the funeral at Windsor was, it was a wonderful opportunity to show to the world that we are excellent when it comes to quality and precision.

It was not only the uniforms and gleaming instruments of those taking part, but the sight of one of the world’s most durable 4x4s conveying the coffin of His Royal Highness on his last journey. The Midlands was very well represented with a string of highly polished Range Rovers in the cortege. These pictures will not have gone unnoticed by viewers throughout the word.

Now that is where the pride comes in. To achieve such a spectacle, it took a lot of dedicated choreography and just plain hard work to achieve the end result. It was an outstanding success of which everybody involved, however small the part played, can be justifiably proud.

As a spectacle and a tribute to a good man who had served his Queen with such loyal love and devotion, it was very fitting.