First ‘queue views’ study finds most people paying respects to the Queen want to show gratitude over grief, and are more likely to be Remainers
- Academic study revealed mourners are ‘surprisingly representative’ of Britain
- Survey showed 56 per cent would vote Conservative in an election tomorrow
- Dominating feeling for most mourners was that they wanted to thank the Queen
- The Queen’s funeral: All the latest Royal Family news and coverage
The first academic ‘queue views’ study has revealed most people paying respects to the Queen want to show gratitude rather than grief.
They are far from ‘nationalistic’ and are ‘surprisingly representative’ of Britain in terms of age, ethnicity and gender.
And while over half would vote Conservative, the majority are Remainers with liberal views towards those protesting at royal commemorations.
The first academic study of people waiting in the queue has revealed that most want to show their gratitude towards Queen Elizabeth II rather than grief
The study, led by Professor Rob Johns of Essex University, a specialist in political psychology, has involved five researchers questioning every ninth person along selected points in the queue route.
Key questions included how they were feeling, why they had come and whether they saw themselves as ‘mourners’.
‘That seems to be the standard term for these people – it’s how they’re being described,’ said Prof. Johns.
‘But gratitude rather than grief seems to be the summary of what we’re finding. There’s a huge contrast to the case of Princess Diana.
‘The point about thanking Queen Elizabeth, the feeling that this was someone who had been there all their lives, has really dominated over feeling sad or really strongly about her.’
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today he said 56 per cent of those surveyed would vote Conservative if an election was held tomorrow.
The study, led by Professor Rob Johns of Essex University, a specialist in political psychology, involved five researchers questioning every ninth person along selected points in the queue
Most were Remainers – ‘something to do with the fact that it is easier to get there from Greater London, which is of course more Remain.’
Prof Johns added: ‘If you ask about classic Liberal-Conservative things, such as the death penalty, this is a group slightly more liberal than Britain as a whole.
‘And on the issue of how to deal with people protesting at the royal commemorations, they were pretty liberal on that too.
‘It doesn’t at all conform to the narrative that these are very Conservative, very nationalistic people. Not at all.’
The study found that while over half would vote Conservative, the majority are Remainers with liberal views towards those protesting at royal commemorations
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