Tens of thousands of people have been waiting for hours in line to see the Queen lying-in-state at Westminster Hall ahead of her state funeral on Monday - but those waiting patiently won't all be there to sincerely mourn Her Majesty, according to a crowd behaviour expert. The extraordinary queue reached around five miles on Friday and even had to be paused by the government as they announced it had reached capacity.
There were signs along the way warning mourners that the wait would be 14 hours long, but this didn't deter people. It seems everyone wants in on the act, with people flocking to the capital in droves while others have sat and watched it from the comfort of their own homes with live streams online.
Social media users have jokingly dubbed it as 'the most British thing ever' as the nation appears obsessed with politely queueing. However Stephen Reicher, a professor of psychology at the University of St Andrews, has explained the deeper psychology behind the queue and different motivations for standing in line, along with why it has become its own moment in history.
