As four days of extraordinary queues of mourners throughout London comes to an end, a tent village has cropped up across from Westminster Abbey ahead of the Queen's funeral.
The formal lying in state period drew to a close on Monday morning (London time), but people have been camping out on the streets for the next - and main - part of Her Majesty's farewell.
Scout leader Zoe Maidment is camping opposite Westminster Abbey for the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. Photo: RNZ / Katie Todd
Those who had waited up to 15 hours in the queue to see the Queen's coffin have described enduring sore bodies and cold fingers - but making new friends and memories along the way.
They told RNZ walking into Westminster Hall was "surreal" ,"beautiful" and "well worth the wait."
People have started pitching tents across the street from Westminster Hall, to get a good view of the funeral procession in 48 hours pic.twitter.com/Vj1vycxqdt
— Thomas Daigle (@thomasdaigle) September 17, 2022
"It was emotional. We were waiting in the queue for 14, 15 hours... but it's still worth it to pay respects to the Queen. She's a lovely lady and this is all about the respect," one mourner, Adil said.
"It was a tiring process but eventually when we were inside and we paid our respects, it was all worth it."
It's a process that hundreds of thousands of people have now gone through: walking the equivalent length of Auckland CBD to Takapuna on the North Shore.
Soldier Phil Tucker said he was unperturbed by the cold temperatures and long overnight wait to "pay respects to the boss".
Mourners wait in line to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth II ahead of her funeral. Photo: RNZ / Katie Todd
After seeing her lying in state, he was planning to spend a second night outside, so he could also secure a spot to watch the funeral procession.
"I've got a stool and a rescue chair... a sleeping bag and a blow-up mattress.. and I've been colder. Norway - jumping into the ice, that's very cold.."
He'll be joining people who have camped out for two nights already on the corner of Parliament Square Garden.
One of them, called Steve said he was enjoying his time in the new tent village across from Westminster Abbey.
A mourner named Steve waits in his tent across from Westminster Abbey. Photo: RNZ / Katie Todd
"We've got a tent, air mattress, minus 18 degree sleeping bag 'cause it got quite low last night, TV stick for my tablet so I can watch you lot broadcasting, a solar panel, battery charger. Everything you need for luxury. We're doing a lot better than these people in hotels, I can tell you that," he said.
On the very front row, in perhaps the most prime position, is a tent commandeered by Zoe Maidment.
The Scout leader from Essex arrived on Friday, having decided she'd rather camp out for the procession than see the Queen lying in state.
She said she was glad she did.
Scout leader Zoe Maidment and her tent. Photo: RNZ / Katie Todd
"Everyone's in the same situation so you kind of get to know each other [around you.] it's 'can you watch my stuff whilst I run to the toilet', 'yeah, no problem."
"And everyone loves to share a story about how they've been to previous events, how they've seen the Queen, things like that. It's a bit of a campfire, really."
The Queen's funeral will take place at 11am on Monday morning London time (10pm NZ time).
News reports in the UK estimate as many as two million people will gather in central London, with up to 4.1 billion viewers globally.
