Too sad for cycling, time or BLEEPS! Bike rack ‘closed’, busking banned, clocks stopped at minute of Queen’s death and Morrisons lowers volume on tills out of respect for Her Majesty… but other claims are dismissed as fakes
- Council changed signs stopping people using bike racks during mourning period
- Morrisons has turned checkout beeps down as a mark of respect to the Queen
- Busking suspended by TfL, bin collections halted and clocks stopped in Brighton
- Wetherspoons dismisses ‘fake’ sign it has stopped selling condoms in it pubs
- Has something closed in your area which you believe stay open? Contact [email protected]
- Full coverage: Click here to see all our coverage of the Queen’s passing
As news of the Queen’s death broke last Thursday evening, the UK entered an official mourning period which will last until after her state funeral on September 19.
This has caused much of the UK to close out of respect for Her Majesty – but some closures, cancellations and initiatives to show respect for the late monarch have raised eyebrows.
From bike rack closures, turning down supermarket checkout bleeps to stopping the clocks, these are some of the more ‘obscure’ ways people are commemorating Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
Bike racks close in Norwich during period of national mourning
Norwich City Council put up a sign saying the cycle rack will be closed from September 9-21
Norwich City Council was forced to clarify the sign after backlash from social media users
A local council was forced to change signs banning people from using bike racks due to the period of official mourning caused derision online.
People complained after Norwich City Council’s decision to close various bike racks throughout the city to mourn the late monarch, who died on Thursday.
The metal racks have been closed from September 9 until September 21.
The original sign gave no explanation other than the period of mourning and threatened to remove any bike found on the rack during this time.
It caused outrage with one person saying it was ‘the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen’.
Another said ‘locking up your bike is now disrespectful’.
Following the reaction, new signs have been put up to explain the bike racks have been temporarily closed to make room for mourners laying flowers and queuing up to sign a book of condolences.
Supermarket chain Morrisons has turned its checkout bleeps down and music and tannoy announcements have been switched off in stores as a mark of respect to the Queen.
The change was noticed by one customer, who took to Reddit to explain he was struggling to pay for his shopping after not being able to hear the ‘bleeps’.
He then said he was told by a member of staff that they had been adjusted due to the period of national mourning.
Morrisons confirmed the change to MailOnline.
Busking banned on TfL services
Busking on the London Underground has been suspended while the nation mourns.
Transport for London (TfL) said the busking suspension applies to underground and railway stations throughout the period of national mourning, which ends following the Queen’s funeral on September 19.
A TfL spokesperson said: ‘During the period of national mourning, we have taken the decision to pause the busking scheme across our network, and we will reopen the scheme following this’.
However, the move has caused outrage for some buskers who say that this will affect their monthly incomes.
One person said: ‘Busking on the London Underground has been suspended until ‘after the funeral’.
‘I’m a busker on the London Underground with a daughter to support and rent and bills to pay. More than quarter of my monthly income gone, along with many others.
‘Doubt her Maj would have approved’.
Royal Yacht Britannia cancels sailing
Visits to the Royal Yacht Britannia has also been cancelled as the attraction in Edinburgh announced it was closing until the end of the official mourning period.
In a tweet they said: ‘All at The Royal Yacht Britannia are deeply saddened by the death of Her Majesty The Queen and would like to pay tribute to the unfailing and outstanding dedication, and service that Her Majesty gave to our Nation.’
The Royal Yacht Britannia announced its closure until the end of the official mourning period
‘Please note that Britannia will now be closed until the end of the period of official Royal Mourning.
‘For those with pre-booked tickets, we will be contacting you in due course.’
Met Office mocked for announcing partial halt to social media posts
The Met Office was mocked last week after announcing a partial halt to social media posts out of respect for the Royal family following the Queen’s death.
The weather forecaster told its followers it would ‘only be posting daily forecasts and warnings’ as ‘a mark of respect.’
But users were quick to question why sharing more detailed weather forecasts could be seen as ‘disrespectful’ when it is a vital public service.
The forecaster tweeted: ‘We are saddened by the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Our thoughts are with her family and all those affected by this news. As a mark of respect during this time of national mourning we will only be posting daily forecasts and warnings.’
Followers quickly branded the decision ‘nonsense’ and ‘nuts’, while others quipped that cancelling the weather would have been ‘just what she wanted.’
Former BBC broadcaster Jon Sopel also waded in on the row, writing: ‘I am totally bewildered. Why is it a mark of respect to give us the weather forecast for today, but not tomorrow?
‘Or to put it another way, why is it disrespectful to give us tomorrow’s weather?’
But the Met Office said people had misunderstood its intentions.
The Met Office later clarified its initial tweet: ‘The use of the word ‘daily’ in our earlier Tweet may have given the false impression that we’ll only be posting once a day.
‘It was always our intention to continue to provide forecasts and warnings for the days ahead, through Twitter, multiple times a day.
‘It is right at this sad time to pause other non-operational content that isn’t a forecast or warning, to ensure the public can focus on any potential impactful weather during this period.’
Local councils halt bin collections to show ‘respect’
Local councils have been ridiculed for halting bin collections on the day of the Queen’s funeral.
A number of local authorities across England have announced the decision to delay bin collections on their social media pages as a ‘mark of respect for Her Majesty’.
One person responded: ‘nothing says respect more than stopping the bin collections’.
Clock stops in Brighton at time of Queen’s death
Clocks have been stopped at the time of the Queen’s death at the Regency Town House in Brighton
The Regency Town House in Brighton has stopped the clocks at the time of the Queen’s death as a mark of respect to Her Majesty.
They said: ‘The shutters are closed, the windows draped. Clocks are stopped at the time of death, volunteers will wear armbands & servants will put black bows in their mob caps.
‘The front door has black ribbon & spruce
‘The Regency Town House’s Regency mourning for the Queen’s funeral has begun.’
Wetherspoons dismisses ‘fake’ poster about condom machines
Wetherspoons dismissed claims they have stopped selling condoms from pub bathrooms machines, saying they never sold them in the first place.
It comes after a picture purporting they had halted dispensing them during the royal period of mourning caused derision on social media.
Fake news: Picture showed a sign purporting to be Wetherspoons is dismissed as fake
Wetherspoons said it has never stocked condom machines in any of their 900 pubs across the UK.
A photo recently surfaced of an alleged poster in a Spoons bathroom saying the condom machine would no longer work due to the ‘Royal period of Mourning’.
Taking to Twitter, one user shared the spurious image alongside the tweet, ‘This is getting ridiculous!!!’.
A spokesman for the company said: ‘This is fake. Wetherspoon don’t even have condom machines in its pubs.’
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