Operation London Bridge

A series of meticulous plans came into effect following the announcement of the Queen’s death. The schedule of events, commemorations, and royal duties to be carried out in the wake of Her Majesty’s passing took on a series of codenames. They related to the movements of her coffin and concern for members of the grieving royal family.

The long-held London Bridge plans for the Queen’s death were put into action and set out to a strict timetable, including the lying-in-state and a state funeral. The Queen died in Scotland, which triggered the more complex contingency plans called Operation Unicorn.

Other measures formed part of the carefully organised arrangements, including Operation Marquee, which embraced the four days of the Queen’s lying-in-state, focussing on the arrangements inside Westminster Hall.

Senior royals paid their respects here, standing guard around the coffin in a tradition that is known as the Vigil of the Princes.

Operation Marquee was linked to Operation Feather, which referred to arrangements for the public to queue in their hundreds of thousands to see the monarch’s coffin on its catafalque.

Operation Feather dealt with the logistics outside Westminster Hall, including management of the queues as people waited to pay their respects.

Gallowglass has held the position of principal contractor for Operation Marquee since 2013, and responsible for supplying crew, plant operators and a management team consisting of our Crewing MD Jon Sigsworth (visible in the image above, in Parliament with the King), Head of Operations & Crew Chiefs.

We would like to thank our operational partners - Ascot Structures, Overlay Event Services, RME Services, Illumin8 & Sunbelt Rentals – for their able assistance guided by the support of Gallowglass Health & Safety.