People around the world clutched a tissue in one hand and a TV remote in the other as they watched Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral on Monday.
Nick Bullen is the founder of True Royalty TV, a streaming service dedicated to royal families.
He said there were various moments in the whole 10 days of mourning that were very moving.
“I found the vigil of the grandchildren very moving — young James Severn, her youngest grandson, age 14, the son of Edward and Sophie,” Bullen told Gormley on Monday.
Bullen he said there were many moments Monday, in particular.
“The faces on the four children — Charles, Anne, Andrew, Edward — you suddenly realize that amongst this incredible pageantry, they were burying their mother,” he said.
Bullen said there were shots of Prince Andrew fighting to keep his emotions in check, and another moment when the final moments of “God Save the King” swirled in Westminster Abbey during the ceremony.
“Everybody belted it out and you could see the tears in King Charles’ eyes and I think it must be the mixture of ‘This is the end of my mother’s reign,’ but equally a moment for him thinking, ‘Wow, this is now being sung for me in this incredible ancient institution,’ ” said Bullen.
The services and processions early Monday were more public, but the private services for the closest family were to happen later Monday. Bullen said the events had been planned in every detail by the late Queen and included a lot of elements of her faith, as it was very important to her.
When Queen Elizabeth II is committed to the royal vault, her reign is over and King Charles will be the monarch. Bullen said Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort, are an amazing team.
“I think they will be incredibly effective as King and Queen,” said Bullen.
As Prince, Bullen said Charles did a lot of work with young and disadvantaged people and he thinks the royal couple will focus on that generation now to get them engaged in the monarchy.
Bullen said he has been hearing that King Charles and his team have been considering ways to reach Generation Z through things like the social media app TikTok.
“These are really live conversations. The King realizes that that generation get most of their news through sources like TikTok, so he’s now saying, ‘OK, let’s get our messaging out into TikTok.’ And I think that gives you a sense of how he and the rest of the Royal Family are ensuring that they do bring that generation with them,” said Bullen.