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Final preparations for the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral have begun ahead of the Queen and her family saying their farewells to Philip.
Tributes were paid to the duke from friends and colleagues in the hours before his interment and the Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage debuted a poem written to mark the death of the Queen’s consort.
A small group of the duke’s close family and friends will attend a televised funeral service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle at 3pm.
Covid regulations have reduced the scope of the service with public elements cancelled, mourners reduced from around 800 to just 30, and all guests wearing face masks and sitting apart.
The nation is saying farewell to the Duke of Edinburgh during a televised funeral at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle following his death last week at the age of 99.
The Queen will lead a small group of close family and friends at the service for her husband of 73 years.
Covid regulations have reduced the scope of the service with public elements cancelled, mourners reduced from around 800 to just 30 and all guests wearing face masks and sitting apart.
The ceremonial elements of the service will include a procession which steps off at 2.45pm, followed by the arrival of a Land Rover carrying the coffin and a national minute’s silence.
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2.37pm
Philip’s custom-built Land Rover Defender hearse, designed by the duke and modified over 16 years, has been driven into the castle’s quadrangle and has stopped outside the Equerries’ entrance.
The modified Jaguar Land Rover that will carry the coffin of the Duke of Edinburgh arrives for his funeral (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
The Defender TD5 130 chassis cab vehicle was made at Land Rover’s factory in Solihull in 2003, the year he turned 82.
With its heavy-duty wheels and angular structure, the polished sturdy, utilitarian vehicle stands as a showcase for the duke’s practical nature and his passion for functional design and engineering.