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Meet the people who waited hours to see the Queen’s cortege in Tayside

Crowds at Brechin Castle. Pic: Kim Cessford/DCT Media.
Crowds at Brechin Castle. Pic: Kim Cessford/DCT Media.

Thousands of people lined the streets of Tayside and Fife waiting to pay their respects to the Queen.

The late monarch’s coffin was driven from Balmoral to Edinburgh, through Angus, Dundee, Perthshire and Fife.

From toddlers to ex-servicemen, crowds gathered by the side of the A90 and on bridges over the M90.

We spoke to some to find out how important it was to them to be there in person.

Ishrat’s daughter gave the Queen flowers as a child

Ishrat Umar, 54, from Dundee, helped steward as the cortege travels along the Kingsway.

The teacher  touched the Queen’s dress as a nine-year-old when she was at the City Square in 1977.

Then, 25 years later in 2002, her daughter Zara presented her with flowers when she returned to the City Square for her Golden Jubilee.

Ishrat Umar.

She said: “Zara was six at the time and said to the Queen, ‘take your flowers!’

“The Queen watched to make sure she got back to me safely.

“I have so much affection for the Queen – she gave her life to the job.”

Zara giving flowers to the Queen in Dundee City Square.

Lisa Franchi, 57, from Dundee took her four corgis – Zara, Dino, Amber and Oliver, to  the Kingsway.

The dogs are direct descendants of one of the Queen’s beloved pets.

Lisa Franchi and her four corgis.

She said: “She has been a remarkable Queen and she worked right up until the end.

“It’s terribly sad to see her go.

“I brought my four corgis along because they are a direct descendant of one of hers so I thought it was fitting.

“I saw the Queen when she came here in 1977 for the Silver Jubilee so I wanted to be here today.”

Sisters Marion and Mary remember the  King’s death

Sisters Marion Flynn, 72, and Mary Devlin, 82, are long-time fans of the Royal Family.

They would often travel to Buckingham Palace and Mary has even been a Queen impersonator, dressing up as the monarch to help open Invergowrie Primary School’s garden in 2012.

Mary said: “[When the King died] the headmaster at Hawkhill Primary came round the classrooms and said the pupils had to stand.

“He said the King has died, long live the Queen.”

Marion Flynn (left) and sister Mary Devlin.

“We’ve had afternoon tea in every one of the palaces.”

“Any time there was a wedding or event, we all got round the television to watch it.

“We would guess what the Queen would wear.

“The first time we got a colour television was for Princess Anne’s wedding.

“We had to be here, I was there at the beginning and now here we are here at the end.

“It’s sad.”

Inga says Queen was ‘part of daily life’

Inga Hallam, 42, of Glenrothes but originally from Lithuania, met the Queen at Leuchars with husband Mark, a staff sergeant in the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.

Ingra Hallam watched in Dundee.

She said: “I met her twice.

“My husband is in the army – she was part of our daily lives.

“My husband is originally from Yorkshire and she made a joke straight away it was nice to see a Yorkshire man in a Scottish regiment.”

‘She was our boss for 22 years’

Mark and Suzanne Handford waited in Dundee with their daughters Emilia, 7, and Ellie, 9.

Suzanne said: “We’re both ex RAF so she was our boss for half of our lives.

“I was just saying to my daughter how lucky we are – in the saddest sense of the word – to be a part of this.

“I said to her this is a moment in history that you’ll be glad you were a part of.

“We’re not going to have a Queen for at least 100 years by the looks of it.”

Mark and Suzanne Handford with their daughters Emilia, 7, and Ellie, 9, watched the Queen’s cortege.

Mark said: “She has been through all of it, our boss for 22 years.

“We’re from Cornwall and Sunderland originally but live just outside Monifieth.

“We just had to pick up our eldest from her Brownie camp, they’ve been talking about the queen in brownies and they’ve both been learning about it in school as well.”

Piper Craig Weir played for the Queen four times

Piper Craig Weir from Angus band Gleadhraich played for the Queen at Balmoral just three weeks ago.

It was the fourth time he had played for the Queen.

Craig Weir took his pipes to the Kingsway.

He said: “I was lucky enough to speak to her at another event at Balmoral in 2018 and she asked me about a show I played in Ottawa.

“She was a lovely lady everyone adored.”

Harry held Queen close to his heart

Harry Gerrard, 66, from Dundee met the Queen several times during his 18-year military career with the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards and Tayforth University Officers’ Training Corps.

He got ‘togged’ up for the cortege, wearing his Northern Ireland service medal and his father’s World War 2 medals.

Harry Gerrard.

He said: “The lady was my boss for 18 years.

“When you sign up you swear your allegiance to her.

“I’ve always held her close to my heart.

“I had to come down.”

Murray waited in spot he saw the Queen in 1953

Murray Phillips, 81, stood in the same spot in Dundee where he last saw the Queen – in 1953.

As a pupil at Morgan Academy, he stood at the Kingsway and waved at the Queen shortly after her coronation.

Murray Phillips saw the Queen in 1953.

He said: “We stood in the rain and she passed in two seconds but we could see her quite clearly.

“I haven’t seen her since but I am standing in the same spot today.

“I wanted to come today to square the circle.”

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