It's absolutely unbelievable to me the way some people on this thread are frothing at the mouth because others don't want to watch a Royal event on the telly. We have choice and free will in this country, thank god.
A lot of young people haven't really got a clue who the various members of the royal family are, and what they are for, they cannot relate to them at all, they have kept themselves at such a distance from the plebs. The Palace machine has completely failed in this respect over the last 40 years, all their PR has been about keeping nasty stories out of the papers, keeping the status quo and preserving senior members of the royal family almost as mythical creatures and far too important to have to justify their positions. Times have changed since the class system of the 50s when the queen came to the throne, the idea of deference is outmoded. The palace should have spent recent years actively convincing people that a modern royal family is still needed in the modern age and SHOWING the public more of what they actually DO. In most people's minds they are for turning up to places, shaking hands, cutting a ribbon and making a speech, with a bit of waving from balconies, signing documents and hosting dinners. It simply isn't enough to justify their existence, young people need convincing as to why we NEED them, and fast. I think William and Harry could have been the ones to do that, it was the right time to really show the positive things a monarchy brings, but it all went tits up.
Personally I think that if the queen had thought the job was that important she stood have stepped down at the point she could no longer carry out all the activities expected of the role. But let's face it she LIKED being queen, apparently she has more or less said to herself. And what we have left is someone approaching their 80s, so now we won't even have a generation growing up with the same monarch for many years, which has largely prompted the support for the queen from the older generation. We will have a king who is at an age where his physical health is no doubt already declining - how long will HE be able to function properly in the role and be a visible and active presence in society? What exactly will he be doing to "serve" us?
Many many people think along these lines. Even those who have an interest in history rather than being a royalist as such, I'm not sure why it would be essential for them to watch a funeral rather than a coronation in order for them to witness the transition from one monarch to another.