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Queen Elizabeth ll during a visit to Australia in 2006 to open the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne (AAP Image/AP POOL/Rob Griffith)
HOW AUSTRALIA OBSERVES THE QUEEN'S DEATH
FRIDAY
* The governor-general announced the death of Her Majesty The Queen, following advice from Buckingham Palace.
* The prime minister issued a public statement on television and suspended parliament.
* A gun salute will take place at Parliament House in Canberra at dusk to mark the Queen's death. It will consist of one round for each year of The Queen's life at 10 second intervals.
WEEKEND
* A proclamation ceremony will be held at Parliament House in Canberra. This event is open to the public, subject to public health restrictions in force at the time.
* The governor-general will read the proclamation on the forecourt of Parliament House and this will be followed by a 21-gun salute.
* In Australia, there will not be an official mourning period.
* The Australian national flag should be flown at half-mast until after the day of the funeral in the UK. Direction will be provided to raise the flag for the proclamation.
* Condolence books have been made available at Parliament House and Government House in Canberra. Books of condolence will also be open at Government Houses in each state. Online condolence forms have also been created on the governor-general and Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet websites.
* In Canberra, floral tributes may be left at the forecourt of Parliament House and Government House. Each state and territory has made arrangements for floral tributes. The royal family have noted that instead, Australians may wish to consider making a donation to a charity of their choice.
TO BE DETERMINED
* The funeral of Her Majesty The Queen will be held at Westminster Abbey attended by Australian representatives.
* A national memorial service will be held following the return of the prime minister and governor-general from London.
* States and territories may hold additional memorial services.
* A national day of mourning is declared by the prime minister, coinciding with the national memorial service. One minute's silence will be observed at 11am.
* Condolence motions will be given in both the House of Representatives and the Senate on their next respective sitting days following the national memorial service.
© AAP 2022
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Australian coins of the future are likely to feature the head of King Charles III facing the opposite way to his late mother's.
But they will circulate alongside each other in a sort of mother-and-son currency double act.
A west-facing Charles III would continue a royal tradition, said to have started under Charles II from 1660, where the the new monarch faces the opposite direction to their predecessor in their profile portrait on coins.
Since her coronation in 1953, six likenesses of Queen Elizabeth II have appeared on the obverse side of Australian coins, the last of them struck in 2018 and all facing right.
The only exception to the "about face" convention was the coinage of Edward VIII, who insisted on his profile facing left.
"It is not clear whether this was an expression of rebellion against convention, or vanity, to show what he regarded as his better profile, containing his hair parting," according to John Richardson, of Britain's Open University.
"It was nevertheless determined that designs for the coinage of George VI, his successor, should be prepared as if that of Edward VIII had ... depicted him facing right, thus reinstating the original tradition."
Those involved in the lengthy and complex processes of producing Australia's currency won't say how quickly the image of King Charles might appear.
But coins and the $5 note bearing his mother's image won't vanish overnight.
While the Australian Mint produces the nation's coins, responsibility for all aspects of the production and issue of Australian banknotes rests with the Reserve Bank of Australia.
And it's clear that as far as the $5 note is concerned, we will have a choice for some time between a new Charles III and a late Elizabeth II.
"The monarch has traditionally appeared on the lowest denomination of Australian banknotes and it is our expectation that this would continue should there be a change in the monarch," a spokeswoman for the RBA said.
The Queen made the transition to decimal currency in 1966, when she first graced the now-discontinued $1 paper note, and has long featured on the $5 polymer note.
"All Australian banknotes issued from 1913 retain their legal tender status," the RBA spokeswoman said.
If Charles III does appear on notes any time soon, it's a fair bet the planning started many moons ago because making money costs a lot of money - and time.
The RBA's latest suite of polymer notes - called the NGB (Next Generation of Banknotes) program - took 10 years and $37 million to complete, ending with the $100 bill in 2020.
The notes, mainly introduced to stymie counterfeiters, are printed in Melbourne by the RBA's wholly-owned subsidiary Note Printing Australia, and undergo no fewer than 13 production processes.
New $5 notes featuring King Charles' head will also likely continue to bear some of the complex security traits of existing notes, including 3D and moving imagery, a tactile feature for the visually-impaired, colour changes, micro-printed lines from the constitution and fluorescence under UV light.
Coins are the responsibility of the Treasurer, under the 1965 Currency Act, and manufactured by the Royal Australian Mint. It has produced more than 15 billion coins since being opened by the new monarch's late father, Prince Philip, in 1965.
Australia won't be the only nation in the Commonwealth facing the prospect of introducing new designs on its coins and notes.
Queen Elizabeth II has appeared on the currency of more than 30 countries, the first being Canada's $20 note in 1935, when she was only nine years old.
She is still likely to be in circulation somewhere, a century later, and well after her death which was announced on Friday at the age of 96.
© AAP 2022
Main image: Royal Australian Mint/PA Wire; Instagram/theroyalfamily
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A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain, 08 September 2022. (EPA/TOLGA AKMEN)
The Queen has died and the Prince of Wales is now King.
Here is the day-by-day account of what is expected to happen next, leading up to the Queen's funeral in about 11 days' time.
DAY OF DEATH
Thursday would traditionally have been D-Day or D+0 in the plans for the aftermath of the Queen's death, codenamed London Bridge.
But the announcement has come late in the day - at 6.31pm on Thursday September 8 - meaning plans have been shifted a day to allow the complex arrangements to be put in place, meaning D+0 will be considered on Friday.
The new King had dashed to the Queen's bedside.
Charles was joined by the monarch's other children the Princess Royal, the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex, and the Duke of Cambridge, now heir to the throne, with the Duke of Sussex also travelling there.
Also at Balmoral are Camilla - the new Queen Consort - and the Countess of Wessex.
The King and Camilla will remain at Balmoral on Thursday evening and will return to London on Friday.
The following is expected to take place on Friday - D+0. But concrete plans are yet to be confirmed by Buckingham Palace.
D+0 - FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9
Charles and Camilla during celebrations for the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in June (EPA/NEIL HALL)
The King and Queen return to London - Charles and Camilla will stay at Balmoral overnight on Thursday but return to London on Friday.
Audience with the PM - Despite his grief, duty calls for new sovereign Charles and his first audience as monarch with Prime Minister Liz Truss is expected to happen as soon as practically possible.
Confirming funeral plans - Charles will meet the Earl Marshal - the Duke of Norfolk - who is in charge of the accession and the Queen's funeral, to approve the carefully choreographed schedule for the coming days.
The arrangements - codenamed London Bridge - have long been planned in consultation with the government.
They will incorporate Operation Unicorn, the contingency plans for the death of the Queen in Scotland.
During the coronavirus pandemic, the government and the Royal Household prepared a "London minus" version of the London Bridge plans in case it was needed - which is now unlikely - with all the elements but with the involvement of fewer people.
Court mourning - Charles will decide on the length of court or royal mourning for members of the royal family and royal households. It is expected to last a month.
National mourning - The UK government will confirm the length of national mourning, which is likely to be around 12 to 13 days, from now up to the day after the Queen's funeral.
They will also announce that the funeral day will be a public holiday in the form of a Day of National Mourning.
Flags - Union flags on royal buildings will fly at half-mast.
The Royal Standard never flies half-mast. It represents the Sovereign and the United Kingdom and is a symbol of the continuation of the monarchy.
If the new King is in residence at a royal palace or castle, the Royal Standard will fly there full-mast as is the tradition.
The Union flag does not fly there at the same time.
The Union flag will also be flying half-mast over the Houses of Parliament. The UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is in charge of arrangements for lowering flags on government buildings.
Downing Street reportedly expressed concern in the past that the government would face a wave of public anger if it did not lower its flags within 10 minutes of the announcement of the Queen's death.
Bells and gun salutes - Bells will toll at Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral and Windsor Castle, and gun salutes - one round for every year of the Queen's life - will be fired in Hyde Park and at other stations.
Floodlighting at royal residences will be turned off, and the public will begin to leave flowers as tributes from around the world pour in.
Charles's televised address - The King will make a televised address to the nation, which he is due to pre-record.
He will pay tribute to the Queen and pledge his duty to his service as the new sovereign.
Service at St Paul's Cathedral - The Prime Minister and senior ministers will attend a public service of remembrance at St Paul's in central London, with the event planned to appear as if impromptu.
D+1 - SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10
At 10am on the day after the Queen's death, the Accession Council usually meets at St James's Palace in London to formally proclaim Charles as the new sovereign.
First, the Privy Council gathers without the King to proclaim the new monarch and arrange business relating to the proclamation.
Then Charles holds his first Privy Council, accompanied by Camilla, and William who are also Privy Counsellors, and makes his personal declaration and oath.
The first public proclamation of the new sovereign is read in the open air from the Friary Court balcony at St James's Palace by the Garter King of Arms.
Proclamations are made around the city and across the country.
Union flags go back up to full-mast at 1pm and remain there for 24 hours to coincide with the proclamations before returning to half-mast.
Charles will also hold an audience with the prime minister and the cabinet.
D+2 - SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 11
The Queen's coffin is expected to be taken by road to the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
Proclamations will be read in the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland devolved parliaments in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
D+3 - MONDAY SEPTEMBER 12
Procession is expected along Royal Mile to St Giles' Cathedral. Service and the Vigil of the Princes by members of the royal family.
The public may get the chance to file past the Queen's coffin at a mini lying in state in St Giles'.
The House of Commons and the House of Lords are expected to come together in Westminster for a Motion of Condolence, which the King could attend.
After leaving England and visiting Scotland, Charles will at some stage travel to the other countries of the UK - Wales and Northern Ireland - known as Operation Spring Tide.
D+4 - TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13
Coffin expected to be flown to London. Expected to be at rest at Buckingham Palace.
A rehearsal for the procession of the coffin from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster takes place.
Floral tributes left outside Buckingham Palace in central London, following the announcement of the death of Queen Elizabeth II (Yui Mok/PA Wire)
D+5 - WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 14
The Queen's lying in state is expected to begin in Westminster Hall - Operation Marquee - following a ceremonial procession through London. It will last four full days.
The Archbishop of Canterbury will conduct a short service following the coffin's arrival.
Hundreds of thousands of people will file past the coffin on its catafalque and pay their respects, just as they did for the Queen Mother's lying in state in 2002.
The management of the queues outside is Operation Feather.
Senior royals are also expected to pay their own moving tribute, standing guard at some stage around the coffin - the tradition known as the Vigil of the Princes.
D+6 - THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 15
Lying in state continues and a rehearsal is likely to take place for the state funeral procession.
D+7 - FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 16 to SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 18
Lying in state continues, ending on D+9. Heads of state begin to arrive for the funeral.
D+10 - MONDAY SEPTEMBER 19
The Queen's state funeral is expected take place at Westminster Abbey in central London.
The original plans are for the Queen's coffin to process on a gun carriage to the abbey, pulled by naval ratings - sailors - using ropes rather than horses.
Senior members of the family are expected to poignantly follow behind - just like they did for the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh.
The military will line the streets and also join the procession.
Heads of state, prime ministers and presidents, European royals and key figures from public life will be invited to gather in the abbey, which can hold a congregation of 2000.
The service will be televised, and a national two minutes' silence is expected to be held.
The same day as the funeral, the Queen's coffin will be taken to St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle for a televised committal service.
Later in the evening, there will be a private interment service with senior members of the royal family.
The Queen's final resting place will be the King George VI memorial chapel, an annex to the main chapel - where her mother and father were buried, along with the ashes of her sister, Princess Margaret.
Philip's coffin will move from the Royal Vault to the memorial chapel to join the Queen's.
© PAA 2022
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Popular children’s TV show Peppa Pig has introduced its first same-sex couple/
Two lesbian polar bear mums have appeared in the episode called ‘Families’, which just aired in the UK.
Peppa’s friend Penny the Polar bear explained in school that she has two mums while drawing a picture of two polar bears in dresses.
Penny explained: “I live with my mummy and my other mummy. One mummy is a doctor and one mummy cooks spaghetti. I love spaghetti."
End of story, but of course the episode has made waves both positive and negative.
Really nice to see age appropriate representation of same sex couples on @peppapig with Penny & her two mummies. We are loving "One mummy is a doctor and one mummy cooks spaghetti. I love spaghetti." #PrimaryRocks #WomenEd #LesbianVisibility #DiverseEd https://t.co/EuZPdDcUDK
— Safe Schools Alliance (@SafeSchools_UK) September 7, 2022
Well what do you know? My kids saw the first same-sex couple on Peppa Pig and the world didn’t end. Penny Polar Bear said she lives with her ‘mummy and her other mummy’ and the four horsemen of the apocalypse didn’t came storming over the horizon to bring humanity to a close. pic.twitter.com/dtcHMDXJt5
— Simon Harris - #LovelyBitOfSquirrel (@simonharris_mbd) September 7, 2022
Ok. But that's the end for my grandkids watching that channel.
— Frank Nkrumah (@osagyefo) September 7, 2022
Peppa Pig has been running for 18 years and this episode marks the first time the show has featured a same-sex couple.
It comes two years after a petition was started demanding the creators introduce a same-sex parent family to the show, which ended up with 24,000 signatures.
The petition stated: "Children watching Peppa Pig are at an impressionable age, and excluding same-sex families will teach them that only families with either a single parent or two parents of different sexes are normal.
Main image: Channel 5
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