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A series of carefully-laid plans are in place for when the Queen dies.
The operation has been dubbed “London Bridge is down” and it has been in place since the 1960s.
The phrase will be used to convey the news through official channels.
The first person to be informed will be the Queen’s private secretary, Sir Christopher Geidt.
He will inform the Prime Minister before information is released to the 15 other countries where the Queen is head of state, and the rest of the 26 Commonwealth nations.
The news will not be official until it is announced by Buckingham Palace.
If the death is expected, say from a long illness, then detailed plans will have been put in place for handling and announcing it.
The media will be informed ahead of the general public and a period of mourning will follow.
Nowadays, it’s common for major announcements to go out to the world’s media at once via a news agency such as the Press Association.
All BBC channels will be interrupted to show the BBC One feed which will broadcast the story.
The media will have prepared obituaries in advance, as well as a number of pre-recorded films and documentaries.
Pilots will also announce the death on their flights.
It’s likely most UK workers will be sent home early and 12-day mourning period will follow.
During this time, the Queen’s body will be moved to Buckingham Palace and preparations will be made for the state funeral, which will be led by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Union flags will be flown at half across the country and the House of Parliament will be recalled.
Newsreaders will wear black suits and ties and television programmes will be replaced by the news feed.
The BBC will cancel scheduled comedy shows until after the funeral.
On the funeral day, the London Stock Exchange will close, as will most UK banks.
And both the funeral and the subsequent coronation will become formal national holidays.
The measures are expected to cost the British economy billions of pounds.
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