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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Matthew Dresch

King Charles and Camilla receive Queen's coffin at Palace for last night with family

The Queen has returned home to Buckingham Palace and has been welcomed by King Charles and her closest family.

Her Majesty's coffin was flown from Edinburgh Airport to RAF Northolt, in London, earlier this evening.

The Queen’s Colour Squadron then conveyed her coffin to the state hearse, which carried her body back to Buckingham Palace.

Prince William and the Princess of Wales joined the family to privately receive the coffin at the Palace, alongside Harry and Meghan.

The Queen's children Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, as well as Sophie, Countess of Wessex were also there.

Princess Margaret's children Lady Sarah Chatto and Earl Snowden joined the welcoming party alongside all of the Queen's grandchildren and their spouses.

Follow all the latest updates on our live blog here

The crowd cried out "thank you" as the hearse made its way into Buckingham Palace (Sky News)

Well-wishers lined the 15-mile route to pay their respects to Her Majesty as she returned to the Palace.

Hundreds held their phone lights in the air as the coffin passed through the gates of the Palace, with the crowd erupting into applause moments later.

The coffin will be carried by a bearer party to the Bow Room where a sovereign's piper will play a lament.

It will remain in the Bow Room overnight before a procession on Wednesday to Westminster Hall for the start of the lying in state.

Her Majesty will lie in state from tomorrow until her funeral on Monday.

Members of the public are already queuing up outside the hall to view the Queen's coffin, with thousands placing floral tributes in nearby Green Park.

The hearse carrying the coffin of Britain's Queen Elizabeth arrives at the Buckingham Palace (REUTERS)

Mourners could have to queue for 30 hours to see the Queen lying in state in Westminster, Tory ministers believe.

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan today warned Tory MPs of the huge number of mourners expected to descend on London for the four-and-a-half day vigil.

She told them in a WhatsApp group: “Queues could be up to 30 hours as we are obviously expecting and planning for unprecedented demand."

Seen from the top of the Wellington Arch, the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II is taken in the Royal Hearse to Buckingham Palace (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Sources told The Times they are expecting 750,000 mourners, outstripping the 200,000 who saw the Queen Mother in 2002, in a five-mile queue.

But it could be more and “there’s just no way of knowing”, one source told the newspaper.

The Government is said to be braced for London to become “full” for the first time, with 1,500 soldiers to help stewards man the queue, and 10,000 police officers.

Onlookers watch as the hearse transporting the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II arrives at Buckingham Palace (James Veysey/REX/Shutterstock)

The queue will be open 24 hours a day until 6.30am Monday.

The Queen landed back in London earlier this evening after leaving Scotland for the last time.

Her coffin began its final journey when it left Balmoral on Sunday before reaching St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh.

Crowds lined the street to see the Queen's coffin passing by (Ben Cawthra/LNP)

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Thousands of members of the public moved solemnly past the coffin last night as it stood on public view for 24 hours at St Giles' Cathedral.

People queued for hours to say their goodbyes at the cathedral.

Her coffin was then flown back from Edinburgh Airport to London on an RAF Globemaster C-17 flight, accompanied by her daughter the Princess Royal.

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