The significance of the floral arrangement on top of HM Queen Elizabeth II‘s coffin has been revealed, as well as the words written on the “loving” note placed in the centre.
The nation bid a final farewell to our longest-reigning monarch at a State Funeral today.
Around 2,000 guests attended the official service at Westminster Abbey, including world leaders representing nearly 200 countries and territories, 500 foreign dignitaries – such as politicians, civil servants, and some celebrities – and many ordinary members of the public selected for charitable or community works.
Tens of thousands of mourners also travelled to London and Windsor for the State Funeral and burial service, and many more were seen gathering at different hubs across the UK to watch the historic event in real-time.
Queen Elizabeth II’s children – including the newly-ascended King Charles III and Queen Consort – were in attendance, as were her grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and other extended family members.
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The service concluded with a two-minute silence observed by the nation.
Now, it has been revealed why the floral arrangement placed on top of the Queen’s coffin is so significant and sentimental to her and the Royal Family, as well as what the message written on the card placed within the flowers reads.
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HM Queen Elizabeth II’s State Funeral took place at Westminster Abbey today / Credit: The Royal Family
The millions of people watching the State Funeral broadcast live will have seen the colourful wreath of flowers siting on top of Her Majesty’s coffin, along with the Royal Standard flag, and the Queen’s crown, orb and sceptre.
The wreath was made completely sustainably, upon King Charles III’s request.
The Royal Family has revealed that, also upon the King’s request, the floral wreath includes myrtle flowers which have been grown from a sprig of the Queen’s wedding bouquet when she married Prince Philip The Duke of Edinburgh back in 1947.
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The wreath also features foliage of rosemary, which is an ancient symbol of remembrance, and English Oak, which is a national symbol of strength.
The nation came together to commemorate the life of our longest-reigning monarch / Credit: The Royal Family
Flowers cut from the gardens of the Balmoral estate – the Scottish castle where the Queen spent much of her time including her final days before her passing – also feature prominently in the arrangement, and these include the Queen’s favourite flower, the sweet pea, as well as dahlias, phlox, white heather, and pine fir.
Many of these floral tributes also hold a poignant tribute to the Queen’s relationship with her late husband.
Dahlia flowers symbolise a lasting bond and lifelong commitment between two people, while sweet peas are associated with departures and goodbyes, as well as being the birth flower of April – which was the Queen’s birth month.
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At The King's request, the wreath contains foliage of Rosemary, English Oak and Myrtle (cut from a plant grown from Myrtle in The Queen's wedding bouquet) and flowers, in shades of gold, pink and deep burgundy, with touches of white, cut from the gardens of Royal Residences. pic.twitter.com/5RteIWahuW
Typical of many floral arrangements at funeral services, many spectators also noticed that there was a card with a tribute message was placed in the centre of the wreath, and the message written on the note has now been revealed and shared by the BBC on the live television broadcast.
The message on the note card was from King Charles III, and was said to simply read – “In loving and devoted memory, Charles R.”
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HM Queen Elizabeth II died aged 96 on 8 September 2022.
During her reign, she served as Queen of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth – undertaking an important symbolic and unifying role as a head of state, spanning numerous geographical regions, cultures, and religions.
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She was not just the longest-reigning British monarch in history, but she was also the first-ever monarch to reign in the UK for 70 years.
Admired for her duty and dedication to the role, today her remarkable life was remembered by all.
Featured Image – The Royal Family (via Twitter)
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Consumer group urges Oasis and Ticketmaster to refund fans hit by ‘in demand’ ticket pricing
Emily Sergeant
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Ticketmaster is being warned that its ‘in demand’ pricing system for Oasis tickets could be in breach of consumer law.
Which? is now calling on the Manchester band and the ticket website to refund fans.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, Oasis are reforming for a run of shows in the UK and Ireland next year, but the massively long-awaited reunion tour has faced controversy following Ticketmaster’s use of ‘in demand’ pricing – which came into effect when tickets to the gigs went on sale on Saturday 31 August.
Ticketmaster’s ‘in demand’ pricing is where prices surge if demand for tickets is high.
After waiting in a lengthy virtual queue, many Oasis fans had a nasty shock at the checkout when they found tickets were significantly more expensive than they’d expected them to be.
Now, consumer group Which? says it believes Ticketmaster’s lack of transparency around its ‘in demand’ pricing could have breached consumer law, and is calling on the company to “do the right thing” and refund the difference to fans who paid more than the expected face value for tickets.
Which? says it saw evidence that fans were shown one ticket price when they were queuing for tickets, only to have has that price taken away at the last second and replaced with a far higher – and unexpected – ticket price when the page reloaded.
In one example, the cost of standing tickets – which was originally advertised for £151.25 – had surged to £337.50 each, due to this ‘in demand’ pricing.
This meant that four standing tickets, which is the maximum amount of tickets one person could secure in one order, would have cost an eye-watering £1,400 once the service and order processing fees were included.
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs) protect consumers from unfair or misleading trading practices, and it’s this that Which? believes Ticketmaster’s lack of transparency around its ‘in demand’ pricing for the Oasis concerts could have breached, as many fans were not informed about the price increase until after they had tried to add cheaper tickets to their baskets.
“Under the CPRs, when advertising a product, traders must not mislead consumers with how prices are presented or leave out key pricing information that might be needed to make an informed decision about a purchase,” Which? said in a statement.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)is also investigating whether Ticketmaster’s sale of Oasis tickets may have breached consumer law, and if this is found to be the case, this when would enable fans to seek refunds and compensation from both Ticketmaster, and Oasis themselves.
When Which? contacted Ticketmaster, the company said: “We are committed to cooperating with the CMA and look forward to sharing more facts about the ticket sale with them.”
Featured Image – Simon Emmett
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Work commences on multi-million-pound scheme to build affordable and energy-saving homes in Oldham
Danny Jones
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Ground has finally been broken on a new multi-million-pound scheme to build a slate of new affordable and energy-saving homes in Oldham.
Headed up by First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO), the current development in the Hathershaw area is part of a wider strategy to deliver a total of 1,100 high-quality, sustainable properties in the borough and surrounding areas which was greenlit in 2020 and is estimated to run until 2026.
With increasing demand across the region, not to mention housing and cost of living crises across the country, FCHO has commenced work on the properties, enlisting Arca Construct Ltd as the main contractor and the project is estimated to be completed by summer 2025.
Construction work on the first 19 energy-saving and affordable Oldham homes is now well underway for the scheme, which is to cost around £4.5 million.
The Hathershaw developments include 16 three-bedroom houses along Belgrave Road and a further trio of three-bedroom homes over on neighbouring Thatcher Street.
Utilising an injection of £1.07m in funding from Homes England and a £285,000 Brownfield Housing Fund grant via Greater Manchester Combined Authority, the scheme involves transforming a former garage site into homes for affordable rent.
As part of FCHO’s green focus and sustainability targets set in its ‘Big Plan and Sustainability Strategy’, all the homes being created are also going to be eco-friendly as a priority.
Each property is being built to ensure the performance of materials that make up the building is maximised – known in the industry as a ‘fabric first approach.’
Moreover, with energy bills so challenging these days and Greater Manchester weather being what it is, each home will be highly insulated to ensure they are as warm and economical for customers as possible.
The housing association also includes a dedicated Homes and Neighbourhoods team to support homeowners once they’re all moved in.
Better still, with high energy efficiency specs in mind, all 19 of these affordable Oldham homes are set to achieve Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) B, not only saving customers money but also helping reduce their overall carbon footprint.
FCHO’s Development Director, Joel Owen, said of work kicking off: “It is fantastic to see these energy-efficient and affordable homes starting to take shape. Not only do they complement our commitment to provide high quality and affordable homes to people in the communities we are based in and serve but also our work to have sustainable and energy-efficient housing stock.”
Arca Construct’s Head of Construction, Nigel Lonsdale,added: “We understand the critical role First Choice Homes Oldham plays in providing affordable housing and are delighted to be working with them on this scheme.
“We pride ourselves on being a trusted partner, delivering exceptional results at competitive rates. Our membership in the Considerate Constructors Scheme and CHAS Elite underscores our commitment to quality and responsible construction.”
Emily Sergeant -
19th September 2022 
