MEDIA MOVE IN TO CENTRAL HALL TO COVER QUEENS FUNERAL
The State Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey was the first of a monarch to take place at the Abbey since King George II in 1760. There have, of course, been other royal funerals, including those of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997 and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother in 2022, but neither of these were State, as this is usually only reserved for Monarchs or Prime Ministers. On Saturday, 11th September 2022, over a week before the State Funeral, media from all over the world started to arrive at Methodist Central Hall Westminster, which would serve as a media centre serving this sad, but historic occasion. Over 500 world leaders attended the funeral, including President Biden, together with Faith and Church Leaders, including the President of Conference, Revd Graham Thompson and the Revd Canon Helen Cameron, Moderator of the Free Churches Group.
Superintendent Minister of MCHW, Revd Tony Miles, said, 'It was an honour to provide a place of welcome to media organisations from all over the world, including the BBC, ABC, CBS, NBC, and Global Media. We trust we played our part in enabling a Christian service to be accessible to almost 4.1 billion people worldwide.’ The BBC broadcast live from MCHW and on the morning of the funeral from 8am when Huw Edwards interviewed guests, including Andrew Lloyd Webber. Mr Miles was interviewed on several occasions, including a 7-minute live broadcast for ABC with news anchor Kyra Phillips.
MCHW was necessarily closed to the public during this period, but the Chapel was open for prayer, which was appreciated by visitors and media professionals alike. Central Hall Venues, which runs the events side at MCHW, successfully managed and delivered the complex operation. Sarah Ainsworth, CEO, said, "We are very proud to have played a vital role in helping to relay this historic event across the world by hosting major national and international broadcasters and media throughout. All of our staff worked tirelessly to facilitate all group and individual requirements, coming together to help and support the teams around the clock in the lead-up to the funeral and beyond. We are extremely grateful to them all for working so hard during this unique event that will go down in history."
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Notes
- 1. Methodist Central Hall is a global Christian family following Jesus at the heart of London. With members from over 35 national groupings the church has been based in its historic building since 1912. In 1946 the church moved out for two months so that the first meeting of the United Nations could take place in the Great Hall. In 1966 the Jules Rimet World Cup trophy was stolen from the building and the first performance of Joseph and Amazing Technicolored Dream coat took place.
- 2. For further information about Methodist Central Hall, please see
