Piper's lament bids last farewell from castle

The Queen Mother's coffin was taken from Windsor Castle to the Queen's Chapel at St James's Palace in London yesterday.

A lone piper played a Highland lament as the coffin, draped in her personal standard and surmounted by a wreath of pink variegated camellias, was carried from the small Windsor chapel.

The Dark Island lament, played by the Queen's Piper, Pipe Major Jim Motherwell, was one of the Queen Mother's favourite tunes.

During the 37km journey from Windsor to London, small groups of people along the route bowed their heads or burst into applause.

The coffin was received by the Dean of the Chapels Royal and the Bishop of London, the Right Rev Richard Chartres, and the Sub-Dean, William Booth.

Prayers were said for the Queen Mother during a short service at the Queen's Chapel. As the coffin was carried in, the Bishop said: "We receive the body of our sister Elizabeth with confidence in God, the giver of life, who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead."

The small congregation included the head of the Queen's Household, the Lord Chamberlain, Lord Luce, and the Queen Mother's lady-in-waiting Lady Grimthorpe.

Until Friday, when the body is taken to Westminster Hall, members of the Royal Family, friends and personal staff will be able to pay their private respects. First to arrive were the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, followed by the former King Constantine of Greece.

At Westminster Hall the Queen Mother will lie in state until the funeral and interment in the George VI Memorial Chapel within St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

Earlier yesterday, the Queen was seen riding in Windsor Great Park with her daughter, the Princess Royal, who has cancelled official engagements to spend time with her mother.

At Westminster, meanwhile, fears were growing within Labour that many of the party's MPs will stay away from Westminster when both Houses of Parliament are recalled from their Easter recess today to pay tribute.

Tory MPs have been told they must attend, but Labour has not made attendance compulsory.

At St James's Palace yesterday, genuine mourners were outnumbered by tourists, many of whom had accidentally stumbled upon the procession.

An American family was lured to the join the crowd in the hope of catching a glimpse of history in the making.

"We were passing when we heard this was going on," Greg Patterson, from Michigan, said. "I've brought my family to it for a bit of a history lesson. We connected with Princess Diana but we never really understood what the Queen Mother did so we thought we'd come here to learn something about British heritage and tradition."

A couple of Australian backpackers, Lisa Clarke and Kylie Barrett, admitted their intentions to be less genuine: "This is sad, but it was expected. We really came here because we wanted to be on TV."

* Buckingham Palace has set up a post box to cope with letters of condolence to the Queen. Correspondence should be sent to PO Box 1900, Buckingham Palace, London SW1P 1AA.

- INDEPENDENT, AGENCIES