Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II: 35 million euros, 4 billion viewers… these insane figures – Midi Libre

4 billion viewers, up to 35 million euros spent, more than 10,000 police officers deployed… The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II is also a story of numbers. From Paris to Buenos Aires via Tokyo, the ceremonies surrounding the death of Elizabeth II have aroused genuine global interest. The Queen of England is above all a symbol. His death had been expected for several years and the protocol had already been operational for a long time. But organizing this real funeral of the century requires an organization to match the popularity of Elizabeth II. More than 10,000 police officers During the official funeral on Monday, September 19, the main heads of state of the Western world and their respective spouses, numbering 2,000, were invited. For the occasion, the largest security device in history was deployed across the Channel with no less than 10,000 police officers on the ground. “As a single event, it is bigger than the 2012 Olympics, bigger than the Platinum Jubilee weekend,” Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy told the Guardian. Ahead of Her Majesty’s funeral, an impressive 24-hour queue formed to see the Queen one last time in her coffin. More than 750,000 people have moved. 6,000 soldiers, 142 sailors This Monday, during the official funeral, the highlight of the ceremonies, more than 142 sailors took turns to pull the lead coffin of the Queen towards Westminster Abbey. For the event, nearly 6,000 soldiers were mobilized to perform a long-standing rehearsal choreography. Figures that include 4,416 members of the army, 847 of the navy and 686 of the air force, and finally, about 175 members of the armed forces of the Commonwealth countries, according to information from Fortune. In addition, this Monday, more than 1 million English visitors but also from all over the world were expected. Ceremonies that will have cost up to … 35 million euros, according to the first estimates. 4 billion viewers Those who were not present for the Queen’s funeral were still able to benefit from live coverage of the event thanks to the media from all over the planet. Already in 1953, the Queen channeled television audiences with more than 277 million viewers. According to the first estimates of the Daily Mirror, this year more than 4 billion people were gathered in front of the small screen. A first estimate which remains to be confirmed in the next few hours which gives the measure of the importance of the queen in the world. An over-occupation of media time which raises questions at a time of the urgency of climate change. “I wonder where our national gaze and attention is largely directed (…) Why are far more important and current issues, such as the future of life on Earth, receiving so much attention? less from the media?” Asks in particular Euan Ritchie, researcher in applied ecology at Deakin University in Melbourne in an article in the Guardian.