Events in sport and the arts are being cancelled as the country mourns the death of Queen Elizabeth. Changes to so many aspects of British life – from the running of government to pastimes like sports matches and plays to televisions and radio output – will be seen during the national mourning period, which runs up to the funeral.
The Premier League and Football League are postponing all fixtures this weekend.
All games in the Women’s Super League, Women’s Championship and Women’s FA Cup have been postponed this weekend.
The Scottish Football Association also announced the postponement of all professional games over the course of the weekend.
The second day of the final Test between England and South Africa is off, but the Test will resume on Saturday. No play was possible on day one because of rain, meaning that the match has been reduced to three days. All Friday fixtures in the Rachel Heyhoe Flint Trophy, a 50-over women’s tournament, have been called off.
The BMW PGA Championship started on Thursday morning but golfers were called in off the course after the death of the Queen was announced on Thursday afternoon. Friday’s play was cancelled altogether. The tournament resumed on Saturday.
All race meetings scheduled for Friday and Saturday have been called off. Horse racing, which had a particularly close affinity with the Queen, was the first sport to confirm there would be no meetings at all.
The fixture scheduled for Musselburgh racecourse on Sunday will be cancelled as a mark of respect for the fact that the Queen’s body will be lying in rest in Edinburgh.
Premiership Rugby has confirmed that the two Friday evening matches that were due to open the league season have been postponed to the weekend, when all other games will be played as planned.
The Tour of Britain was declared over after Thursday’s stage, meaning that the stages planned for Friday, Saturday and Sunday will not go ahead.
All fights scheduled for Friday are off and that Saturday’s middleweight world title fight between Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall has also been postponed to October 15.
The King has approved an order that the day of the Queen’s funeral will be a bank holiday. The date is yet to be confirmed.
The Department for Education said schools and colleges in England should remain open as normal during the mourning period.
In a message to headteachers, officials from the department said it would issue further guidance after details of the funeral are confirmed by the royal household.
Headteachers were told: “Schools and further education settings should remain open. While normal attendance is expected, headteachers continue to have the power to authorise leaves of absence for pupils in exceptional circumstances.”
The message from DfE went on to auggest that schools may want to “consider conducting special activities, holding assemblies or adapting planned lessons” to commemorate the Queen’s life.
Shops will generally remain open throughout the mourning period although some may choose to close on the day of the funeral, particularly if they are close to the route of the procession.
Official guidance from the Government states: “There is no obligation on organisations to suspend business during the National Mourning period.”
Some businesses may wish to close during the mourning period, especially on the day of the Queen’s State Funeral, but this is at their discretion. None of the major supermarkets have yet announced changes to their opening times.
Postal and rail strikes were cancelled on Thursday as the country entered a period of national mourning after the death of the Queen.
A planned strike by Royal Mail workers on Friday has been called off following the Queen’s death. Members of the Communication Workers Union were due to continue a 48-hour walkout in a dispute over pay and conditions.
Rail strikes that were being prepared for September have been cancelled. Train drivers union Aslef had set a strike date for Thursday, September 15. The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) had planned a walkout on Monday, September 26.
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has postponed its annual conference that was due to be held in Brighton from Sunday for four days.
Usual government business has been scaled back to essentials, with policy announcements put on pause – though measures to implement the new energy price freeze will still progress.
Government press releases and policy announcements will not be made in the usual way during the mourning period, though critical information will still be communicated.
Public buildings will continue to function and the machinery of government continues, but a high bar will be adopted for new government communications with the country.
One drive that will continue is implementing the newly announced energy price freeze. Some form of legislation will need to be passed to take effect before the start of October.
Liz Truss held a meeting on Thursday night with relevant Cabinet ministers, police leaders and representatives of the Royal household to discuss arrangements for the coming days.
MPs’ tributes are expected to be made in Parliament from this lunchtime, into Saturday, in a special sitting. The Prime Minister is set to lead the tributes in the House of Commons.
Flags were lowered to half mast across government buildings in Whitehall on Thursday night, as they were in scores of locations across the country.
Cultural establishments were also closing their doors, The National Gallery shut and The Royal Opera House pulling its performance of Don Giovanni.
The BBC has cancelled the Last Night of the Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, where the Queen was a patron, as a mark of respect following her death.
It said in a statement: “Following the very sad news of the death of Her Majesty the Queen, as a mark of respect we will not be going ahead with Prom 71 on Friday, September 9 or the Last Night of the Proms on Saturday, Sept 10.”
Westminster Abbey announced it would be closed to tourists following the monarch’s death but would be open for prayer, reflection and worship.
Meanwhile, across the country churches were being encouraged to “muffle” their bells, a rite reserved for the death of the Monarch, the bishop of the diocese, or the incumbent vicar.
The filming of the sixth season of The Crown, the popular TV series about the Queen’s life, was expected to stop out of respect for the passing of Her Majesty.
Courts in England and Wales will remain open during the mourning period. They are expected to hear only urgent matters on the day of the funeral itself.
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