Since it was confirmed last Saturday that Queen Elizabeth’s funeral would be held on Monday 19 September, a slew of businesses and services have said they will be reducing operations or closing for all or part of the day as a mark of respect.
With the day declared a bank holiday, many employers have given staff the entire day off and most shops will be closed. So what will be open on Monday and when?
Shopping
For those trying to buy essentials, options are severely limited before 5pm, and even after that cutoff there are only a few major outlets open.
Aldi, Lidl and Morrisons will be closed all day. Waitrose will shut all stores apart from a few near the procession route. Asda will be open only after 5pm and no online deliveries will be offered. Large Sainsbury’s and Tesco stores will be shut all day, apart from some in central London and Windsor. After 5pm, Sainsbury Local and petrol stations and Tesco Express will be open.
Most shops will be closed, with big department stores such as Harrods, House of Fraser, John Lewis and Selfridges announcing plans to shut for the day. Other retailers that have confirmed they will close include Argos, B&Q, Currys, Holland & Barrett, Homebase, Ikea, Jack Wills, Primark, Specsavers, Sports Direct and Wilko.
Lloyds and Well pharmacies will be shut all day, while other chemists such as Boots will close during the hours of the funeral.
Entertainment
For those hoping to escape the day of mourning, options will be limited. Cinema chains Odeon, Cineworld and Showcase will be closed. Vue Cinemas will not show any films but customers at some locations will be able to watch the funeral for free.
Many theatre performances, for example Hamilton and The Book of Mormon in the West End of London, will not be running that day. Fans of 10-pin bowling can go to Hollywood Bowl after 1.30pm. While Better gyms will be shut all day, PureGym will be open before 10am and after 2pm.
Center Parcs faced a backlash for saying it would close its UK sites for 24 hours on Monday, backtracking after facing accusations of “ruining people’s holidays”. The company said it had “reviewed our position regarding the very small number of guests who are not due to depart on Monday and we will be allowing them to stay on at our villages rather than having to leave and return on Tuesday” although no facilities would be available in its holiday villages so they would get a discount.
Hospitality
Most pub chains have confirmed they will open on Monday, including most of the more than 400 pubs at Fuller’s group and the 44 operated by JW Lees. Some pubs, such as those in the Greene King chain, will open early to screen the funeral from 11am. JD Wetherspoon said its sites in central London and in rail stations and at airports would operate as normal, but most of its other pubs would open later than usual after the funeral.
Greggs is closing its stores for the day, although a small number of outlets operated by franchise partners may stay open, while McDonald’s said it would shut its UK restaurants during the day before reopening at 5pm.
Of the restaurants that are operating on Monday, many are welcoming customers later than usual. Doors open at Domino’s Pizza from noon, and at Ask and Pizza Express restaurants from 3pm.
Travel
Flights to and from Heathrow will be halted for half an hour on Monday to avoid disrupting the two minutes’ silence at the end of the funeral. Britain’s biggest airport will also halt arrivals in the early afternoon to avoid planes coming in to land over the west of the capital during the procession of the Queen’s hearse, and it will stop take-offs later so as not to disturb the ceremonial procession to Windsor.
London mainline train stations will be open all night on Sunday and on Monday. About 250 extra rail services will run on the day of the funeral – including some overnight trains – and Network Rail has postponed engineering work.
For those wishing to travel by road, Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco will close their petrol station forecourts, with some reopening at 5pm. Only a small number of Tesco self-service fuel stations will reopen in the evening and customers are advised to check local pumps.