King Charles to address nation for first time as monarch

King Charles III is expected to address the nation for the first time as sovereign later, following the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II.

Britain’s longest-reigning monarch died peacefully, surrounded by her family, at Balmoral in Scotland on Thursday.

Gun salutes will be fired and church bells will be tolled on Friday as the UK pays tribute to her reign.

There have been spontaneous gatherings and outpourings of emotion at Balmoral, Buckingham Palace and Windsor.

Members of the public have travelled to leave flowers, messages of thanks and condolence for the Queen and Royal Family, with many visibly tearful or overcome with emotion.

Union jacks are being flown at half mast and Parliament will gather later to pay tribute to her momentous reign.

The bells of St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and Windsor Castle are expected to toll at noon in tribute to her life and service.

A gun salute in London’s Hyde Park has been arranged for the following hour, with 96 rounds to mark each year of her life to fire around 13:00 BST.

There will be a remembrance service at St Paul’s at 18:00 BST, attended by Prime Minister Liz Truss and other senior ministers.

It will be open to the public, with 2,000 tickets to be released on a first-come-first-served basis.

Those wishing to attend must visit in person to the City of London tourism office on Carter Lane in London to collect a wristband from 11:00.

The King and his wife, Camilla, now Queen Consort, will later on Friday return to London, where the monarch is expected to address the nation after holding an audience with the new Prime Minister Liz Truss.

All of the Queen’s children and grandchildren, the Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex, travelled to Balmoral, near Aberdeen, on Thursday after the Queen’s doctors became concerned about her health.

Prince Harry left Balmoral on Friday morning to travel to Aberdeen airport, where he was seen placing an arm around a member of staff.

On Friday, the palace released some details of plans over the coming days, with King Charles declaring a period of Royal mourning be observed for seven days after the funeral of his mother.

There will be no physical book of condolences for members of the public to sign, but the palace has opened an online book of condolences for those who wish to leave messages.

The government has said it expects large crowds to gather in central London and other Royal Residences as a mark of respect, warning there could be some travel disruption, traffic delays and significant crowding,

Members of the public have been asked to leave their flower tributes in designated areas at Royal Residences.

Tributes to the Queen will also be paid by MPs and peers in the Houses of Commons and Lords from midday, with normal politics to be put on hold for a period of mourning which is due to last until late into Friday evening.

The Cabinet has met on Friday morning, with the only item on the agenda to pay tribute to the Queen.

There will also be a rare Saturday sitting of the House of Commons, where senior MPs will gather to take an oath of allegiance to the new King from 14:00, with condolences continuing again until the evening.

Subdued atmosphere on the Mall

By Nadeem Shad, reporting from Buckingham Palace

Early morning in the twilight around the palace the mood was subdued.

A slow but steady stream of locals, tourists and commuters on their way to work have been paying tribute. Some brought flowers, others cameras to document the historic occasion.

Notes dotted around the gates offer condolences in various languages. Cyclists could be seen making several laps of the palace, often with phones out a second time to take snapshots of the gradually growing crowd.

Later on, with the day’s sun fully covering the area around the Victoria Memorial, people took up prime positions waiting and watching.

Some have already been here for hours, as teams of international news crews grows ever larger.

Following his mother’s death, King Charles said it was was a “moment of great sadness” for him and his family and that her loss would be “deeply felt” around the world.

“We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished sovereign and a much-loved mother.”

During the coming period of mourning, the King said he and his family would be “comforted and sustained by our knowledge of the respect and deep affection in which the Queen was so widely held”.