Joe Biden lands in UK ahead of Queen’s funeral Summary Here’s a round-up of what has happened today, as Queen Elizabeth II’s eight grandchildren stood vigil over her coffin in Westminster Hall, and King Charles and the Prince of Wales met people queuing to see her lying in state. The Queen’s eight grandchildren stood watch over her coffin as she lay in state in Westminster Hall. The group, including Prince William and Prince Harry who were dressed in military uniform, stood around the coffin for about 15 minutes on Saturday night. The King and Prince William met people in Lambeth who were in the line to see the Queen lying in state. The surprise visit saw them talk to people in the crowd, as others shouted “god save the King”. The accessible queue to see the Queen’s coffin has closed permanently, with all time slots until the ceremony ends at 6.30am on Monday taken up. Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice have issued a moving tribute to their grandmother, which recounted picking raspberries and lavender with the late monarch. US president Joe Biden has arrived in the UK ahead of the funeral on Monday. That’s all for today. Thousands continue to queue to see the Queen’s coffin, as the wait time is estimated to be 17 hours. Further updates are expected overnight via the DCMS Twitter account, and the live Youtube tracker. As queuewatch continues, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has said in its latest bulletin that the estimated wait for people in the line to see the Queen lying in state is 17 hours, a four-hour increase on its last update a couple of hours ago. The snaking queue still begins in Southwark Park, some five miles from Westminster Hall. Temperatures are forecast to drop on Saturday night, with advice being given for people to wrap up warm. Joe Biden lands in UK ahead of Queen’s funeral The US president Joe Biden has arrived at the UK before the Queen’s funeral on Monday. He landed at Stansted airport with his wife Jill, after leaving Maryland in the north-east US on Sunday. World leaders from across the globe will arrive in London in the next 24 hours to attend the ceremony at Westminster Abbey. Canadian PM Justin Trudeau is among those already in the UK capital, with him meeting King Charles on Sunday. Biden will meet Liz Truss on Wednesday in New York. Previous plans for a discussion on Sunday in London have been cancelled. The Guardian’s Miranda Bryant has looked at the people who are making up the long queues that have reached up to five miles in south London to see the Queen lying in state. Having waited hours in line to see the Queen lying in state – and with hours more left to go – well-wishers gave the new King Charles and Prince of Wales an upbeat reception during their surprise visit to the queue that in just a few days has become a London landmark. With William telling a child “you’re over halfway” and his father telling a woman “I hope you’re not too frozen”, the royals were met with cheers and raised mobile phones as they greeted those waiting in Lambeth with smiles and handshakes. The phenomenon of “the queue”, as it’s become known, has attracted fascination, confusion and awe around Britain and across the world. Who would be willing to wait outdoors for as long as 24 hours, braving the elements along the Thames, for a few seconds alongside the Queen’s coffin – and why? Details are being published of where public screens will be erected in parks and venues across the UK for people to watch the Queen’s funeral on Monday. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has said it will be shown in various locations, from Hyde Park in London to Coleraine Town Hall in Northern Ireland. About 125 cinemas in the UK will be screening the event, along with churches and pubs. Sky News, ITV and BBC will be broadcasting the event for those watching at home. Two thousand people will attend in person at Westminster Abbey when the event begins at 11am. The Queen’s coffin will be moved from the Palace of Westminster 15 minutes before, and there will be a national two minutes’ silence at 11.55am. A public procession will begin at 12.15pm as the Queen’s coffin makes the 1.5 mile journey from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch, near Hyde Park corner. It will then be taken by hearse to Windsor in Berkshire. According to PA Media, places where public screenings will take place include: Hyde Park, London. Cathedral Square, Sheffield. Centenary Square, Birmingham. Bitts Park, Cumbria. Holyrood Park, Edinburgh. Coleraine Town Hall, Northern Ireland. Bedford Corn Exchange, Bedfordshire. Bradford Cathedral, Yorkshire. University Square, Coventry. Northernhay Gardens, Exeter. Sandy Park conference centre, Exeter. Exeter City Football Club, Exeter. Millennium Square, Leeds. Manchester Cathedral. Old Eldon Square, Newcastle. Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau has signed the book of condolence at Lancaster House and tweeted: After meeting King Charles III at the Metropolitan police service special operations room in London to discuss the policing operation for Monday’s state funeral for the Queen, Met police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said: “It was a privilege to introduce His Majesty King Charles to some of the teams working hard behind the scenes to deliver this monumental policing operation, which will culminate in us deploying the greatest number of officers in the Met’s history for a pre-planned event on Monday. “It gave officers and staff a real boost.” The government tracker says the current waiting time in the queue is 13.5 hours and people in the line are in Southwark Park. It adds “if the park reaches capacity, entry to the queue will be paused” and tonight is forecast to be cold. This Morning presenters "did not jump queue" say show ITV show This Morning has said its presenters Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby did not “jump the queue” for the Queen’s lying in state and were there to report on the event as media. The pair have received criticism from some on social media after they appeared inside Westminster Hall without having taken part in the queue. A statement shared on a story on the programme’s Instagram account said: “Hello everyone, we would like to clarify something. We asked Phillip and Holly to be part of a film for this Tuesday’s programme. “They did not jump the queue, have VIP access or file past the Queen lying in state – but instead were there in a professional capacity as part of the world’s media to report on the event.” The Observer’s Vanessa Thorpe has looked back at the Observer’s coverage of previous state and ceremonial funerals, the new themes that arise and those that recur. Muffled drums, the catafalque, plumed helmets and a new familiarity with the earl marshal; these are the characteristics shared by the great state funerals of the last century and a quarter of British history. But past press coverage of “national bereavement”, as the Observer referred to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, reveals another common factor. A state funeral, a rare event, has to be explained to every generation. Its pomp and arcane lore is always mysterious. So news reports read like a sombre catechism; a list of conventions designed to give identity to a nation. In 1910, on the death of Victoria’s son, Edward VII, an Observer writer made this point when he praised Westminster Hall and Saint George’s chapel in Windsor by quoting the Scottish historian Thomas Carlyle, who had, he thought, “never said a truer word than ‘the Bible of every nation is its own history’ and in these two buildings … are two of the most glorious pages of that Bible – not imprinted on perishable paper, but carved in noble stone.” Monday’s funeral will trace a template set at the end of Victoria’s reign. Elizabeth II, like her forebears, will go to the Windsor chapel described at the death of her grandfather in 1936 by our special correspondent as “that perfect specimen of Perpendicular architecture”. PA Media has been speaking to people in the queue to see the Queen lying in state. People could have to wait up to 13 hours before they get inside Westminster Hall, according to the government. Sarah Silas, 60, joined the queue to see the Queen’s coffin at about 6pm on Saturday, just over 36 hours before the lying in state period is scheduled to end. She travelled from Walsall, in the West Midlands, to show her gratitude for “what Her Majesty and the royal family did” for the country of Zimbabwe, where she was born. When asked how she felt about waiting overnight to attend the lying in state, she said: “I’m just happy that at least I have the opportunity to say goodbye because of the work that they did.” Speaking about the new King Charles she said: “He actually came and handed over to the president, Canaan Banana, the constitution for Zimbabwe. So he actually gave Zimbabwe to us. “We’re very grateful for him, and we’re very happy that he is the King now.” Leo Jones, 42, travelled from Menorca to see the Queen lying in state. He said: “Her Majesty has given a lifetime to the UK and what’s waiting a day? “I just think that connection that the UK has with the royal family, this just really ignites it as well. “I think it’s quite patriotic, seeing thousands of people gather for this real milestone event in the history of the UK.” Sophie Zeldin-O"Neill The online auction site eBay has removed dozens of listings for wristbands given to people queueing to see the Queen’s coffin as online traders sought to cash in on memorabilia from the occasion. Some used wristbands were attracting bids of up to £70,000 before they were removed. An eBay spokesperson said: “These items are against our policies and we are removing them from our site.” Its event ticket policy prohibits the sale of most tickets, including those for events that are free to the public. Three bangs on the ground from the sword by a guard signals the end of the vigil. The grandchildren step off the platform near the catafalque, and file away behind the Prince of Wales, who looks understandably emotional. He leads them up stairs at the back of Westminster Hall to leave, as family members and friends watch on from a balcony to the side. The public resume filing past.