Soccer great David Beckham stands in line for 12 hours to view Queen's coffin
LONDON -- A surging tide of people — ranging from London retirees to former England soccer captain David Beckham — stood in line for hours to file past Queen Elizabeth II's coffin as it lies in state at Parliament.
Speaking to reporters by the queue, Beckham said he had been waiting with members of the public for more than 12 hours.
"We all want to be here together, we all want to experience something where we celebrate the amazing life of our queen," Beckham said.
"You know something like this today is meant to be shared together. So, you know the fact that we've been here. We're eating Pringles. We're eating Sherbet Lemons, sandwiches, and coffee," the football player continued.
Speaking to a reporter from ITV News, Beckham said he "grew up in a household of royalists" and had come on behalf of his grandparents who he said would have queued if they were still alive.
Beckham recounted how lucky he was to have met the Queen on a number of occasions, highlighting the honor he felt to play for the national English football team.
"You know I always wanted to represent my country, to be captain in my country, and every time that we stood there when we wore those Three Lion shirts, and I had my armband and we sang, you know, 'God save our queen.' That was something that meant so much to us," he said.
Dressed in a black suit, navy coat, and flat cap, Beckham said that despite being in the queue for more than 12 hours, his "knees were OK," though the same couldn't be said for his back.
Beckham has appeared in selfies with fans on social media, and one woman who had queued alongside Beckham for hours told reporters that she had "big respect" for the sportsman who she said, "had paid his respects however he wanted."
The Queue snakes from Westminster Hall, where the late monarch's body is lying in state, for miles along the south bank of the River Thames. It stretches past landmarks such as the London Eye, the Royal Festival Hall and the Globe theater.