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Original poster

Will the Queen’s death be one of those events you remember where you were when you heard?

122 replies

asblindasabat · 30/09/2022 21:54

Just like 9/11, Princess Diana etc.

I’m talking about it like it was years ago when it was only just three weeks ago but I was in work when at lunch time everybody started talking about how the RF were rushing to Balmoral to see the Queen and then how the news presenters were dressed in black.

I checked my phone to see all the Facebook updates on my feed about her doctors were concerned for her health and thinking how something must have been very wrong.

I arrived home at 5pm that day, stuck on BBC news/sky news/ ITV news and sat and watched the rolling coverage.

I was on ITV news when her death was announced at 6.30 and I’ll always remember Mary Nightingale saying the royal household just issued a statement and there was a pause, just remember sitting there saying to DH “oh no this is it, she’s died” and then it was announced.

it was just so surreal. They started playing the national anthem and I was just sitting there in shock as even though it was expected, it was still shocking in some way.

anyone else think they’ll remember where they were and what they were doing that day for the rest of their lives?

OP posts:
MissMaple82 · 01/10/2022 08:03

I will always remember where I was when I heard about Diana, the Queen however, I already can't recall.

MissMaple82 · 01/10/2022 08:05

Bonjovispjs · 30/09/2022 22:12

Yes I will remember. I was wiping the shitty arse of the little boy I'm a nanny for 🤣

I don't think I'd want a nanny looking after my child who refers to the frequent task of bottom changing as "wiping their shitty arse" !! You sound like your in the wrong job.

upinaballoon · 01/10/2022 08:14

Yes, I expect I will remember how I heard about the Queen's death.

I remember how I heard that Diana had died, and about the 9/11 planes.

I remember where I was when I heard that Bobby Kennedy had been shot. I said, "Well, JOHN Kennedy was shot, not Bobby", and the person telling us said, "Yes, but now, Bobby's been shot".

FiveMins · 01/10/2022 08:18

No. It wasn't a tragic or shocking event like 9/11. I barely remember now and it was only a few weeks ago. I don't really remember Diana dying either, just the hysteria around it. Never been into fame or Royalty.

J0y · 01/10/2022 08:18

yes, i took half day and went in to town for a long leisurely lunch. We were discussing online speculation that the queen had died and agreed that this time we just felt it was true. Instead of saying she was fine, her whole family were flying to get there. Looking back at our whatsapps when we got on our different buses home by 16.07 we were saying that we thought it was true (that she had died). Turns out she died at 15.10. so weird. Well, not really, but I do remember.
For the next couple of hours I kept pressing refresh (so to speak). Was really conscious of waiting.

glamourousindierockandroll · 01/10/2022 08:23

Yes I will. Someone at work had "heard" through the grapevine. I was watching it live on my phone as I could see they were all in black and it was very obvious from Huw Edwards' tone that they were geared up to announce it at 6.00pm.

J0y · 01/10/2022 08:24

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves well my 19 year old daughter was fascinated to hear that I worked for a company that had 3 floors in the north tower and that I had spoken to people on the phone who had died (in 9/11). I knew one person who survived, I knew him from home not from work. I think the reason he survived was because he was an Irish man who had lived in london and when he heard ''return to your desk, return to your desk'' he thought, no no no this could be terrorism''. At that point, terrorism wasn't really on the average American's radar but he had experienced it having moved to London first the fortnight after the 1993 bombing in bishopsgate. It was always on his mind that the incomprehensible could be perpetrated for reasons and logic that make no sense to you. On a more trivial note, my dd was also interested in my take on Diana and how she was not perfect but very authentic and also a monarchist.

CakeCrumbs44 · 01/10/2022 08:28

No I don't even remember now. ,9/11 was memorable as it was so shocking and unexpected. A 96 year old dying is not shocking or unexpected

SunshineLollipopsAndRainbows · 01/10/2022 08:31

Yes I do. It was expected but I found myself really sobbing. DH was unmoved!

waffless · 01/10/2022 08:34

Definitely. A relative of mine knew before it was announced in the U.K. and call me. They release the news earlier in other countries.

basilmint · 01/10/2022 08:35

I had to take my cat to vet and was refreshing my phone to check. Got home and had the BBC on - called DH and DC to watch the moment the announcement was made. DC never watch the news but I thought they should see it and might remember it.

RosaGallica · 01/10/2022 08:35

No! I can’t understand the forelock-tugging mentality behind the question tbh. It was the long expected death of an incredibly privileged person who lived a full life and would never have met riffraff like me. The only reason I remember where I was for Princess Diana is because I was working in a remote newsagent where we were unable to get the new editions of newspapers, and so the overnight transformation from playabout whore to people’s Princess affected us more than most. We had a steady stream of customers wanting to be part of the hysteria. I wish I’d had the foresight (and money) to buy up some or all of those early editions that day in fact.

Coffeesnob11 · 01/10/2022 08:38

I was in the car driving to get my son and listening to LBC when Andrew Marr broke down as he announced it. I was almost as shocked at Andrew Marr being emotional as I was about the news.

TimWasMeanToMe · 01/10/2022 08:44

I’ll probably remember - although because of the fact the news was trickling out all day it won’t have that “oh wow” moment that other events do. We were out having an early dinner and our rather bizarre and awkward neighbour happened to be at the same restaurant and joined our table. He got a text message from a friend and then we all checked our phones for confirmation. We’d waited in to watch the 6 o’clock news before going out incase there was an announcement.

I wouldn’t be able to tell you the month (or even year) that Prince Philip died, but in my head it was more of a ‘moment’ as I’d been listening to the radio and the programme was interrupted to break the news and they played the national anthem. The same for Diana. Although over the years Diana’s death announcement has merged in my mind with the guy who played Father Ted’s…

bloodyplanes · 01/10/2022 08:44

I was watching the news because i knew that it was just a matter of time after the earlier announcement and her children rushing to Balmoral. Huw Edwards sounded so choked up as he announced it, it made me cry.

MrsBennetsPoorNerves · 01/10/2022 09:17

J0y · 01/10/2022 08:24

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves well my 19 year old daughter was fascinated to hear that I worked for a company that had 3 floors in the north tower and that I had spoken to people on the phone who had died (in 9/11). I knew one person who survived, I knew him from home not from work. I think the reason he survived was because he was an Irish man who had lived in london and when he heard ''return to your desk, return to your desk'' he thought, no no no this could be terrorism''. At that point, terrorism wasn't really on the average American's radar but he had experienced it having moved to London first the fortnight after the 1993 bombing in bishopsgate. It was always on his mind that the incomprehensible could be perpetrated for reasons and logic that make no sense to you. On a more trivial note, my dd was also interested in my take on Diana and how she was not perfect but very authentic and also a monarchist.

Yes, I think my dd would certainly be interested in knowing about some of the stuff that you're talking about, such as the 9/11 links. And yes, quite possibly talking about what historical figures were like etc.

My question was more around whether a child would be interested specifically in knowing where their parents were when they heard about the death of a very elderly monarch. I'm not saying that they wouldn't, just can't imagine it really. I don't think it has ever occurred to me to ask my parents where they were when they heard about the death of George VI, and that would presumably have been much more shocking as he was so much younger. I do remember my mum talking to me about going to her neighbour's house to watch the the Queen's coronation. Maybe some kids would be interested, but if anything, I would think they would be more likely to show an interest in her life than her death, given her age when she died.

GetTheGoodLookingGuy · 01/10/2022 09:36

Yes, because it was my birthday. We were eating cake when the news came. Very weird birthday!

Original poster
asblindasabat · 01/10/2022 10:07

I agree, the Queen’s passing wasn’t tragic and despite it being expected and hardly surprising, I still found it a bit shocking to hear the words “the Queen has died” as she had been there for so long.

And no it’s not comparable to 9/11 and other tragedies, but I mean from the point of view it was big news just like 9/11 and I thought where people were and what they were doing when it was announced may have been etched into their memories just like 9/11 as it was big news and a moment In history.

OP posts:
Original poster
asblindasabat · 01/10/2022 10:08

strangely, I remember where I was and what I was doing when Michael Jackson and Amy Winehouse died!

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tigger1001 · 01/10/2022 10:10

I doubt it. A 96 year old dying doesn't stick in the brain like a sudden death of a much younger person or a terror attack etc

CentrifugalBumblePuppy · 01/10/2022 10:12

I think so. Sitting with DH & my dogs in our bedroom, watching the 6pm news. Holding on for 10 mins, then another 10 mins, and another before cooking our dinner. Almost missing it at 6:30pm but being persuaded by DH to give it 10 more minutes (it was veggie haggis with neeps & tatties, we never did get round to cooking it that night & had it the next day).

That feeling of being punched in the gut when the BBC panned to the royal standard at half mast, before it quickly changed to Huw announcing her death. I think my husband just said, “We woke up with a Queen, we’re going to bed with a King.”

Called my anti Royalist sister, who was properly sobbing (!), wailing, “She was the Nation’s granny!”.

The same with Diana (early morning on the sofa, feeding my baby daughter). 9/11 (had just picked my daughter up from school at lunchtime - the half day introduction to reception), wondering what world my kids would be inheriting , and my DS with my DH at BBC Elstree filming, so BBC rolling news was everywhere.

I was chaperoning my DS the next day; cast & crew gathered in the reception to watch Bush’s address to the world.

The first scene that morning was my son being dead with his screen mum seeing his body; it was surreal, so many of us were awaiting news from friends & relatives in NYC as information was slowly trickling out (just before we all had phones in our pockets as standard in 2001). Cast & crew in tears shooting this dead child scene. Such sadness just overflowing on what would be a routine scene (these things are just normal, I can’t remember how many times I’ve seen him made up to be ‘dead’ lol, no emotion, just bing, bang, boom, shot done, onto the next). I never get sad when he was doing emotive stuff, it’s just acting after all, but even I had big, hot tears. I think it was the powerlessness of it all, worried about our friends & family & what could happen next spilling out.

Let’s be honest, those of us who had followed the news the day the Queen died knew it was all going south when the BSL guy was dressed in black, swiftly followed by the news team donning their black ties. And Witchell’s royal rambling to fill the airtime. When programming was suspended it was an ‘uh oh’ moment. But even as the news was gently nudging us to the Queen’s death, all afternoon, it didn’t stop the announcement being a shock.

Thesearmsofmine · 01/10/2022 10:15

I think ds will as he was in the middle of his swimming lesson so it will stick in his mind I think. . But I was just at home so probably not.

I do remember where I was when I heard about 9/11, it was so traumatic, more so than anything else.

Original poster
asblindasabat · 01/10/2022 10:15

tigger1001 · 01/10/2022 10:10

I doubt it. A 96 year old dying doesn't stick in the brain like a sudden death of a much younger person or a terror attack etc

for me it’s not really the circumstances of her death, I agree, I was sad about HMTQ passing but she had a long good life so it wasn’t tragic or anything so the only reason it will be in my memory is because it was major news and history in the making.

The UK’s longest reigning monarch died after 70 years on the throne. That’s why I will remember it

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Oldraver · 01/10/2022 10:25

I'm not a Royalist so dotn really give much head to such things, it was bound to happen some time

I was at the time scrolling through FB and was more shocked to see the wife of a singer I follow had died after a brief battle with cancer, leaving an 18 month old little girl, so was more bothered by that

tigger1001 · 01/10/2022 10:28

See for me, the major news of the day should have been the announcement re energy bills, not the death of a 96 year old. It infuriates me that it dominated the news for the next 2 weeks. But I'm not a monarchist.

Already I couldn't tell you the date she died. Couldn't tell you when Philip died either. Other than it was during covid restrictions and that caused political fall out due to government officials partying when the queen had to sit alone at the funeral.

I stopped watching the news/live tv until after the funeral. Same with the radio - stopped listening as couldn't deal with the somber music continually.