See what happens when guests are allowed in... At least no one seems to have nicked the loo paper in the chat room. Wonder if the stolen paper is a collectors item?

Distinguished guests pinched lavatory paper on Coronation Day
By Neil Tweedie
(Filed: 20/08/2004)


The British may no longer be global leaders in many areas but they can still teach the world a thing or two about state ceremonial.

However, as files released at the National Archives yesterday show, the great royal occasions of the past century have enjoyed their fair share of hitches.

Stolen lavatory paper at the coronation of Elizabeth II, water leaking through the roof almost directly on to the coffin of George VI and queue-jumping MPs are but a few of the headaches faced by the men behind the scenes.

The volumes come from HM Office of Works and its successor, the Ministry of Works, which during their lifetimes were charged with the planning and execution of coronations and funerals.

In 1910 the problem revolved around which wreaths to place on the coffin of Edward VII. There were scores to choose from but it was finally decided that there would be only four.

Naturally, one had to come from the Royal Family, and both the Commons and Lords had to be similarly accommodated. But when it came to the fourth choice, the demands of diplomacy won out.

The lucky winner was Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, the late king's cousin, who returned the compliment four years later by invading Belgium.

The headache during the coronation of George V and Queen Mary in 1911 was how to seat all the guests. To solve the problem, an annex was built at the west end of Westminster Abbey and huge galleries erected inside. But was the temporary structure safe?

A report noted: "Upon the completion of the work, 200 men of the Brigade of Guards tested the safety of the galleries with satisfactory results."

Pomp was cheaper in the old days, the funeral of George V in January 1936 costing only a fraction over £2,000. The event was a complex affair because the body of the King, who had died at Sandringham, had to be brought to London before its final journey to Windsor.

Things were going well until the funeral cortege began its journey from King's Cross station to Westminster Hall. The rattling of the carriage dislodged the ball sitting atop the imperial crown, sending it bouncing along the street.

There were more problems at the lying-in-state when MPs, who had been given the privilege of inviting friends to the occasion without the necessity of queuing, decided to turn it into a vote-winning exercise.

The file noted: "This privilege was greatly abused by certain Members who introduced large bodies of constituents, resulting in congestion at the crypt and great inconvenience to the department."

The lying-in-state was accompanied by the proclamation in St James's Palace of his son, Edward VIII. Unfortunately, the Lord Chamberlain decided that the guns used for the welcoming 41-gun salute should be placed in neighbouring St James's Park rather than Hyde Park. The result was a deafening barrage that caused "considerable interruption" to the ceremony. An omen, perhaps, of things to come.

A leaky roof provided the problem during the lying-in-state of George VI in February 1952. Soon after the royal coffin was placed on the catafalque in Westminster Hall, water began dropping on to the platform holding it. It was decided that the ceremony could not be interrupted and no action was taken.

The MPs were also at it again, the report noting that "Members of Parliament greatly abused their privilege of introducing parties of four guests".

The coronation of the present Queen on June 2, 1953, was the first great ceremonial event of the television age.

But austerity still ruled in the 1950s and even the distinguished guests at Westminster Abbey were not above a little pilfering.

The post mortem on the ceremony recorded: "It was found, early on Coronation Day, that much of the lavatory paper had been removed, and in future it will be necessary to take steps to prevent this."