London Bridge Is Down Trivia Quiz

Answer: Operation London Bridge

From all accounts, The Queen was quite pragmatic and well-organized, so the fact that her funeral was planned as early as the 1960s should come as no surprise. There have reportedly been private meetings between law enforcement, government, and media representatives that were held three times a year since then in order to review and update plans as needed. In 2017 an article in "The Guardian" stated that the procedure was so precise that it was planned "to the minute".

Operation Lion is the overall plan in place for any royal death. While Operation Forth Bridge was the plan in place for the death of Prince Philip, Operation Menai Bridge is the plan for the future death of Charles III.

Answer: Prime Minister

The procedure in place planned that The Queen's private secretary would be the first official to learn of her death, and would, in turn, notify the Prime Minister with the code phrase, "London Bridge is down". This would insure that the news was disseminated to the correct people in the correct order.

The outgoing Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, met with The Queen on September 6, 2022, in order to resign, and the new one, Liz Truss, met with her on the same day. During this time Elizabeth II invited Truss to form a government. The changing of power was held at Balmoral Castle (near Aberdeen in Scotland), where The Queen was spending her usual summer vacation, instead of London, because of Her Majesty's ongoing health-related problems.

Answer: Scotland

Balmoral Castle is located in Scotland. Because Elizabeth II passed away in Scotland, there were procedures that were to go into effect there, before the plan was merged with the greater, overall plan. Operation Unicorn first became public knowledge in 2017, according to sources, and an article about the plans appeared in "The Herald" in July 2019. After Operation Unicorn was complete, then Operation London Bridge went into effect.
Did you know the unicorn is the mythical animal of Scotland?

When George VI died in 1952 the code phrase used was Hyde Park Corner. While he had been in poor health, his sudden death came as a surprise, as Princess Elizabeth was in Kenya at the time.

Answer: Holyrood Palace

Holyrood Palace is the Monarch's official residence in Scotland, and The Queen habitually visited the Palace a week at the beginning of her summer vacation in Scotland, a custom that was started by Queen Victoria. Called Holyrood Week, Day One in 2022 featured the Ceremony of the Keys. The Lord Provost gave Elizabeth II the keys of the city; she was accompanied by Edward and Sophie, who are known as the Earl and Countess of Forfar when they are in Scotland.

On Day Two Elizabeth II was honored with the Act of Loyalty Parade by the Armed Forces, given the keys to Edinburgh Castle, presented awards, and conducted an investiture. Throughout the week, The Queen continued to be quite busy, meeting with a number of Scottish dignitaries and attending the Reddendo Parade, while members of her family represented her at other locations throughout the country, visiting with the people and attending events.

The Queen's coffin rested at Holyrood Palace upon its entry into Edinburgh. It took over six hours for the 175-mile journey from Balmoral Castle to the capital city. There were a reported 45 vehicles in the cortege, which passed through Aberdeen and Dundee, and was greeted by thousands of people in both rural and urban areas. Mourners were able to pay their respects after the coffin was moved to St. Giles Cathedral.

Answer: Princess Anne

Prince Anne, The Queen's only daughter, was pictured riding in a car in the funeral cortege with her husband, Sir Timothy Laurence; the cortege traveled from Balmoral Castle to Edinburgh. From there, the formal plan had stated that The Queen's coffin would travel from Edinburgh to London by train, however, it was decided that it would be flown to London on a Royal Air Force plane, out of fear for public safety.

Prince Anne released a statement that said, "I was fortunate to share the last 24 hours of my dearest Mother's life. It has been an honour and a privilege to accompany her on her final journeys....To my mother, The Queen, thank you".

Answer: Change of dress code

The BBC has been very quiet regarding how they received notification of The Queen's death. There was an early tweet by a BBC anchor, said to be erroneous, according to the "New York Post", that was made, and quickly taken down, accompanied with an apology from the broadcaster.

According to the plan, however, the BBC and other media were to be notified by be the Radio Alert Transmission System, through which blue lights reportedly would flash and an alarm, much like an alarm clock's, would sound. Then an already prepared programme would play that was to give broadcasters time to change into dark clothing. As it turned out, with the prior notification from The Queen's doctors that they had concern for her health, broadcasters had time to change into somber clothing before the official announcement was made. In fact, it is recognized that during the period of mourning, broadcasters and any of their guests must be dressed appropriately.

Why is this so important? To show the proper respect. It has long been stated that The Queen had to wait on the airplane that returned her from Kenya after her father's death for someone to bring her appropriate clothing before she could be seen in public. That was obviously important to her.

In doing my research, I found an article that stated that the alarm that was to warn of The Queen's death has been formally tested AND gone off by accident for years!

Answer: Earl Marshal

The Earl Marshal (Edward Fitzalan-Howard), the 18th Duke of Norfolk, traditionally oversees ceremonial occasions, such as coronations or royal funerals. His family has held the office since 1672. According to an article in "Time", King Charles III had a meeting with the Duke of Norfolk to sign off on the arrangements for his mother's funeral.

The Earl Marshall held a press briefing on 10th September 2022, where he outlined the exact procedures that would be taken for The Queen's funeral. He was also involved in the plans for Charles III's accession to the throne.

Answer: False

Members of the Commonwealth were allowed to institute their own specific plans and procedures to pay their respects when The Queen died. What will happen to the Commonwealth with Charles III is King -- The Queen's death does not, of itself, change how the Commonwealth is run.

In the spring of 2022, Prince William saw protests in countries he and his wife visited in the Caribbean, and some of the planned stops on their itinerary had to be changed with little notice. The Prime Minister of Jamaica, bluntly told William that his country was "moving on". The Queen always stressed that membership in the Commonwealth was voluntary and had nothing to do with colonialism, but many people do not agree.

Answer: False

Operation London Bridge stated that the day of The Queen's funeral, 19th September 2022, would be a national day of mourning, but not a bank holiday. During his first meeting with the Privy Council on 10th September 2022, King Charles III approved of the day of the funeral being a bank holiday after he was proclaimed King by the Council.

What this meant was schools and offices will be closed, along with most banks, businesses, and post offices, according to an article in "TimeOut". The proclamation signed by the King affects England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. What a surprise it was to find out that people had already begun petitions to have a bank holiday every year to honor The Queen's death!

Answer: Accession of Charles III

It must be remembered that at the moment The Queen died, her son became Charles III. It was a moment that he admitted that he had been dreading for a long time. So, at this time, he faced two monumental tasks - mourning the death of his mother, and being the new King.

King Charles III has been incredibly busy in the week following his mother's death. That is because he followed Operation London Bridge to the letter, which "The Guardian" has said has "arcane and highly specific" details. That included visiting the four countries comprising the UK, holding meetings and, on the eve of The Queen's funeral, hosting a reception for the heads of state who will be in attendance the next day. It's was a time of mourning, as well as celebration.