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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Billy Gaddi

West Dunbartonshire fell silent as the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II took place

West Dunbartonshire fell silent as the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II took place at Westminster Abbey.

Tributes were paid to the late monarch’s life during a service which celebrated her remarkable reign.

Billions tuned in around the world to watch the funeral, with thousands in West Dunbartonshire paying their respects.

The tenor bell rang for each of the 96 minutes, representing every year of Queen Elizabeth II’s life, to signal the start of the ceremony.

Queen Elizabeth II photographed at Windsor Castle in May (Royal Household/Ranald Mackechni)

A national two-minute silence took place at the end with local people in West Dunbartonshire and across the rest of the UK taking part.

Former MP for West Dunbartonshire and the Queen’s last Lord Speaker, Lord John McFall of Alcluith, last week offered touching words following the Queen’s passing, he said: “Following the death of the Queen, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth Il, the nation and the whole Commonwealth is united in deep mourning.

“On behalf of the House of Lords, I extend our thoughts and prayers, first and foremost, to His Majesty the King and the other members of her family.

“Her Majesty’s supreme dedication to public service is unparalleled, and her legacy will be eternal.

“The nation should reflect on the service she gave to the Crown and to her people, and to give thanks for her life.”

Lord Speaker John McFall interacts with King Charles III in Westminster Hall (Getty Images)

Queen Elizabeth II enjoyed numerous visits to West Dunbartonshire, including on June 28, 1965, when she took part in a two-day visit to Scotland to open the area’s new County Council Offices.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh visited the Singer Sewing Machine Factory and were greeted by 1,700 school children who lined the carriageway from the factory entrance at Kilbowie Road.

Local historian and former West Dunbartonshire Council worker, Billy Scobbie took to Facebook to reminisce about that day, he said: “I was with the Scouts and other youth organisations in Dumbarton Common that day.

“Watching the Queen being driven past I had no idea that she was going to open the office building in which I was to spend 35 years of my working life.”

The Queen in Singer Sewing Machine factory 1965 (West Dunbartonshire Council)

One Facebook user recalled that day, they added: “I was there with Aitkenbar primary school waving our flag. It was a wonderful day. My dad was the Council officer at the time he got to accompany the Queen around the building.”

As a mark of respect, many West Dunbartonshire Council services were operating an emergency or out-of-hours service for the State Funeral.

This included services such as rubbish collection, educational services and libraries.

All flags were flown at half mast, and a Book of Condolence was made available at Municipal Buildings Dumbarton and Clydebank Town Hall.

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