Queue Actually: Strangers hit it off in line to pay respects to Queen

Queue Actually: Strangers who met lining up to pay respects to the Queen are compared to Richard Curtis romcom after they hit it off and reveal plan to watch funeral together on Monday

• Mourners queuing to pay their respects hit it off and will see the funeral together
• Jack and Zoe met at 10.30pm last night, which Zoe called a ‘blessing in disguise’ 
• The queue to pay respects to the Queen lying-in-state is currently 13 hours long
• Pair told C4 they shared great ‘chat’ – in what could be the start of a new romance
• Are you Jack and Zoe? Email [email protected]
• The Queen’s funeral: All the latest Royal Family news and coverage

A budding romance between strangers who met in the queue to pay respects to the Queen may have begun in a moment which has been compared to romcom Love Actually.

Royal mourners Jack and Zoe, who have ‘loads of things in common’ hit it off in the five mile queue, which currently has a 13 hour wait time according to the Government’s live tracker, at 10:30pm last night.

Zoe said meeting Jack was a ‘blessing in disguise’ as they kept each other entertained with ‘crisps and chat’ – and they are now planning to watch the Queen’s funeral together on Monday.

She said that she was going to have ‘mixed emotions’ during the historic and sad funeral on Monday and she wanted to ‘share that moment with someone else’.

Twitter users were quick to cheer on their budding romance – as some suggested a spiritual successor to Richard Curtis’ beloved ensemble romcom Love Actually: ‘Queue Actually’.

Channel 4’s Minnie Stephenson, who interviewed the pair, tweeted: ‘Call me queue-pid,’ adding a heart-on-fire emoji.

Royal mourners Jack (left) and Zoe (right) hit it off in the queue to pay respects to the queen after meeting at 10:30pm last night

Zoe said meeting Jack was a ‘blessing in disguise’ as they kept each other entertained with ‘crisps and chat’ while waiting in the 13 hour-long queue

The pair are now planning to watch the Queen’s funeral together on Monday

Queue Actually: Twitter users said their story could be turned into a spiritual successor to Richard Curtis’ hit ensemble romcom Love Actually – with a cameo from David Beckham

‘Call me queue-pid,’ said Channel 4 News’ Minnie Stephenson, who interview Jack and Zoe

‘We met at 10:30pm last night and we’ve been throughout the whole thing ’till now,’ Jack told Channel 4 News’ Minnie Stephenson this afternoon with a grin on his face.

‘We’ve actually got loads of things in common,’ he said as Zoe looked at Jack with a smile and agreed: ‘Yeah’.

The Channel 4 New reporter asked the pair if they would stay in touch after they had paid their respects in Westminster Hall.

Zoe quickly replied: ‘Yeah, a hundred per cent.’

‘We’re going to the funeral together on Monday,’ Jack added.

‘It’s going to be mixed emotions,’ Zoe said. ‘And it’s something that is part of history so we want to be there and share that moment with someone else.’

People queue to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II during the Lying-in State, outside Westminster Hall in London today

The five mile queue stretches from Westminster all the way to Southwark Park 

Dr Vicky suggest Jack and Zoe should star in Love Actually: The Queue 

Huge Norwood suggested the title: ‘Four Queues and a Funeral’

Jack added: ‘It’s going to be sombre, really. Seeing the Queen go down through to Windsor – it’s going to be weird to see really.’

When asked how the long wait in the queue was, Zoe said meeting Jack was a ‘blessing in disguise’.

‘I thought I was going to be exhausted but it’s just gone so quickly in the queue.’

She said they kept each other going by ‘sharing stories, having laughs and banter.’

‘Good chat,’ they said in unison, with Jack adding that ‘crisps and chat’ have been crucial in keeping them going.

Twitter user Professor Ben Stanley suggested a new Richard Curtis Romcom called the Queue, with an appearance from David Beckham, who queued the full eight hours despite being offered the chance to skip ahead.

He wrote: ‘Richard Curtis romcom called The Queue, back end of 2023, cameo by David Beckham. Just warning you.’

Buerstmayr replied, suggesting the title: ‘Queue Actually’.

Another suggestion for a title by Hugh Norwood was: ‘Four Queues and a Funeral’.

Witty pun-writer Declan Cashin joked: ‘Hope they remembered the mourning after pill.’

Dr Vicky Foster suggested almost exactly the same idea, adding the Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield, who did not enter Westminster Hall via the usual route, should be the villains of the piece.

She tweeted: ‘Love Actually: The Queue. Starring these two, David Beckham as the cameo hero and Holly and Phil as the baddies.’

‘Hope they remembered the mourning after pill’

Comedian Dara Ó Briain had already tweeted a similar idea with the name ‘Meet Queuete’ yesterday

Earlier today, Simon Crook tweeted:  ‘Hope everybody realises Richard Curtis & Working Title are probably brainstorming a Love, Actually-style ensemble comedy drama called The Queue.’

However, in what can be considered a strange case of life imitating art, some users tweeted the idea before Channel 4 published their interview online.

Lynsey James and Amanda Jennings brainstormed a similar idea two days ago on Thursday – which started as a four-part BBC drama starring Keeley Hawes – but then quickly transformed into a ‘Richard Curtis ensemble piece much like Love Actually where the individual stories all coalesce towards the end of the queue’.

Comedian Dara Ó Briain tweeted yesterday afternoon: ‘Pitch idea: “Meet Queuete” about a guy and girl who fall in love in an 11 wait to see the queen. Netflix already very interested.

‘Things get rocky in Episode 6 when she goes for coffee and meets David Beckham.’

However, Twitter user Marty Perkins had a different angle, instead pitching the queue as a sentimental John Lewis Christmas advert.

He wrote: ‘John Lewis’s Ad Agency furiously rewriting the Christmas ad to be about 2 people that meet in #TheQueue and end up having Christmas together. To a slow piano version of 500 Miles by The Proclaimers.’

Are you Jack and Zoe or did you meet a special new person in the queue? Email [email protected]

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