Linda MacLennan on Queen Elizabeth II's funeral: 'She was so clearly beloved that you just wanted to be part of it'
LONDON (CBS) -- After hours of solemn pageantry and tradition, Queen Elizabeth II is now in her final resting place.
The official mourning period for Queen Elizabeth II, the U.K.'s longest-reigning monarch, culminated Monday morning with her state funeral in London's ancient Westminster Abbey. The guest list for the service included around 500 foreign dignitaries, including President Joe Biden and about 100 other heads of state.
Crowds lined the route to Westminster Abbey to see the Queen's casket pass by. Among those in the crowd was CBS 2's Linda MacLennan – a principal anchor with us for 16 years.
MacLennan talked with CBS 2's Brad Edwards about her experience.
MacLennan: "I don't think that anybody estimated correctly the number of people that would come over here to be part of this and pay their last respects to the Queen. I could not believe that people were coming, more people were coming – they just kept coming in the city, and everywhere you were, there were people around you – because she was clearly so beloved that you just wanted to be part of it, really."
Edwards: "What did you think about the service itself? Tell me about your key takeaways."
MacLennan: "You know, I was expecting to be more moved. I have to admit it. I was expecting to feel more emotion. I probably should not have. It is the funeral of the monarch. There are certain things that have to be done; certain people who have to be heard from. They managed to speak to a wide array of clergy people; involve them. It was spectacular to watch. But I think I was, in a sense, spoiled by watching the funeral of Princess Diana, which was pure, pure, and utter emotion. And there was not any of that really today, I didn't think. The emotion that I felt was not so much during the funeral, but it was catching glimpses of the Royal Family, and it was sort of the other parts of the funeral that to me, meant the most, aside from the prayers and the hymns.
"Again, I shouldn't probably say I was hoping for more emotion; I just didn't feel it. But also, to be fair, it's been 10 days since we've lost the Queen, so I think some of the emotion has subsided now."
Watch Edwards' full conversation with MacLennan above.
