Queen Elizabeth has died at the age of 96.

I was just imagining that since the royals aren’t really supposed to dabble in politics that their absence from the British stage wouldn’t necessarily usher in any new thing.

But, I guess every vacuum gets filled by something…

They're not, but they talk to the pm once a week.

How much would a lobbyist pay to get that sort of access?

They can do all their dabbling one to one, behind closed doors.

The Queen let her thoughts on the Independence Referendum in Scotland be known.

It would change, the monarch is head of state.

If we get rid of the monarchy we need a new one.

A president with their own mandate unaccountable to parliament sticks in the throat, and a ceremonial president like the Irish have seems absurd.

I'd rather have Charles as head of state than a celebrity muppet like Ricky Gervais.

The line to pay respects to the Queen is about 10 miles long.

Many who are not so loyal to royalty or interested in monarchies think: The Queen is dead, sad. Well, that's the way it is. And some look with consternation at the "condolenceitis".

But actually this is an old (European) tradition: since the 16th century there were castra dolores ((Latin for castle of grief).

A sensually decorated chapel in the church as a temporary theatrical architecture, which served larger groups of the population to cope with their mourning. There, the dear mourners could make a pilgrimage, be overwhelmed one last time by artistic representations of an idealised regency, and quietly bid farewell.

Since this image programme from the Renaissance is no longer being broadcast, todaymourning is powering through every conceivable channel.

(grin) Noted. I feel you may have pushed me back from the brink of overdoing.
I think it was the Beefeaters what done it to me.

I recognised one of them.

If you visit the Tower you get shown around by Beefeaters, they're a very chatty, friendly lot.

And the one who showed us around was leading one of the processions.

According to BBC radio 4, just now, it's two miles long.

The King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard (aka Yeomen of the Guard) are a type of Beefeaters, though not those who guard the Tower of London.

I didn't see him today, it was a few days earlier, stuff to do with Charles.

I'm not saying I know him, I'm saying I met him, which anyone can do if they go to the Tower.

Their daily uniform isn't normally as flamboyant.

The one you see on the telly is ceremonial.

Even thougn Charles became king the moment his mother died, the crown remains with the body.

It is currently on top of the coffin.

Charles won't get it, or the orb and sceptre until his coronation.

Anyone noted what Nostradamus had to say about current events?

I know it’s meaningless, but that doesn’t stop me from reading them.

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/uk-news/nostradamus-forecast-king-charles-abdicate-25012002.amp

(I know it’s archaic and French, but I’d love to see the original text.)

There's a popular industry of quoting bogus Nostradamus quotes. Consequently, I rarely read about him.

I know. I shouldn’t have even mentioned it.
Bob knows who’s had their hands in it.

According to the BBC tracker the queue to see the coffin is currently 3.8 miles long.

Nostradamus was incredibly vague, so much so that it's only after the event that they say he predicted it.

Hitler is a case in point, the name that is similar to Hitler was a term used for a river in Turkey and shorthand for Turkey itself.

Contemporary readers would think he was prophesying a new Turkish Empire.

Nobody attributed it to Hitler until after he was in power.

Huge displays of affection for the Queen in Hong Kong, biggest outside of the UK.

That says more about how they feel under Beijing than anything else.

British colonial rule his being remembered as a golden age.

Yes, the poor buggers.

Interesting - even more in my opinion - is the reaction in Aden/South Jemen: there is suddenly a kind of empire nostalgia, which is certainly also rooted in the fact that Aden experienced its best times under colonialism.

From what I have read, some in India and Africa are calling for the return of the crown jewels which dates back to British colonialism.

Calls Grow for Return of Crown Jewels to India, Africa After Queen's Death