‘I didn’t expect to experience history.’ Idaho woman has brush with royalty while vacationing in England

EDINBURGH, Scotland — Luci Willits thought she was going to London to see her daughter in college, visit some museums and do some sightseeing. But she ended up experiencing one of the most historical moments in centuries.

Queen Elizabeth II, the former Queen of England who reigned for over 70 years, died at Balmoral Palace in Edinburgh, Scotland on September 8.

Willits, who was vacationing in England, flew into Edinburgh just three days later.

The eastern Idaho native was raised in Grant, a small town outside Rigby, and had dreamed her entire life of having “an experience with a royal.” That is exactly what happened.

On September 8, she and her daughter were having lunch at a small tea house in London when suddenly everyone’s phones started ringing.

“It was the notice that the (royal) family had been called to Balmoral Palace,” says Willits. “Everyone in the cafe started chatting and everyone was like, oh, did you get that too? And the consensus among our new friends in the cafe was that if the family was being called, the queen wasn’t going to make it.”

They continued their day, driving through the streets of London, and once they reached their destination for the night they read the news that the Queen had died.

Willits, her family and friends had expected to attend tours and do some sightseeing but when they woke up on Friday morning, all of their tours had been canceled as the United Kingdom entered a period of national mourning.

They were scheduled to fly into Edinburgh on September 11.

“All of these tours got canceled because everything that was owned by the government was closed,” said Willits. “So we decided that we would just be all in. If we were gonna be there during this historic time, we would be all in.”

Queen Elizabeth II’s body was set to travel from Balmoral Palace to St. Giles Cathedral, where she would be “laid in rest” until she eventually was taken to London to be “laid in state.”

Willits and a friend decided to take advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch history in the making and attend the royal procession to St. Giles Cathedral.

“There were already people line at 9 a.m., and we found a spot at about 11 a.m. down the Royal Mile,” says Willits. “We were the first there on the barricades. To put this into perspective, there were barricades on both sides, police officers every 20 feet, and literally thousands of people.”

Willits and a friend waited for three and a half hours to watch the procession of the Queen and her family to the cathedral, making friends with those standing around them and not quite knowing what to expect.

“It was surreal because, you know, you’ve been standing there for three and a half hours and come to find out that was nothing compared to what some people were gonna do later that evening to see the queen,” says Willits.

According to Willits, a sudden hush came upon the crowd and you could “hear a pin drop.”

“Before you could even see the procession, it was almost like this wind came through and just quieted the group of thousands and thousands of people,” says Willits. “Before I saw the horses, or the casket, or the guards, or the Royal family, everything just went quiet.”

Then, Willits and her friend, along with the thousands of people lined up along the street, watched as the hearse carrying Queen Elizabeth II’s body drove down the street. In tow was the new King of England, King Charles, Princess Ann, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.

“It was like something you see out of a movie,” says Willits. “I couldn’t believe I was there.”

Willits says it was surreal seeing the royal family so up close in person after such a monumental moment in all of their lives.

“You feel this sympathy for this family because they’re grieving their mother, and yet they’re having to do this duty,” says Willits. “I’ve lost a parent, and I can’t imagine having to walk that path with thousands of people looking at you. At this point, the royal children are in their seventies, they’re elderly themselves. So it was odd to see him, it was odd to see them so close.”

Behind the children of the queen, was Sophie, Countess of Wessex, and Camilla, the new Queen Consort of the United Kingdom.

Later that night, as the Queen was being laid to rest in the Cathedral, Willits says she became curious as to how long it would take if she were to stand in line to wait and see the Queen as she laid in rest.

Willits walked the length of the line, which ended up being three and a half miles long. She spoke to someone at the end of the line who told her it was going to be an 11-hour wait.

“I thought, there’s just no way I can do that. I mean, I really wanna do it and I wanna be all in, but I thought there’s just no way I can do that,” says Willits. “I can’t be on my feet for 11 hours.”

The next morning, Willits woke up and knew she had to try again.

“I woke up the next morning and I thought, you know, I just can’t stand it,” says Willits. “I have to see how long this line is.”

This time, the line was only a mile and a half.

“A security officer came by and said if you don’t get a wristband before noon, you’re not getting in and we’re shutting it down,” says Willits. “The clock just kept ticking, and I got in line about 10, and I got my wristband right at noon.”

According to Willits, people in line were often chatting and making friends with one another, but as soon as they entered the church, hushed whispers fell silent as each person stepped up for their turn to pay their respects to the Queen.

“There were folks who did the sign of the cross, and those who were crossing their arms for prayer. It got very weepy for many of us,” says Willits.

While attending school at Rick’s College decades ago, Willits was given an assignment where she was asked to write a list of 50 things she would most like to do in her lifetime. One of them was to have an experience with the royal family.

“I’ve had these lifetime goals that I made when I was in college, and one of them was to physically have a brush with royalty,” says Willits. “I never imagined that this would be the time that it would happen and that all of these, you know, cosmic circumstances would come together.”

For Willits, who has held get-togethers and parties for royal family weddings, this was something she will never forget.

“I’ve told several friends, you know, I went to the UK to see history,” says Willits. “I didn’t expect to experience it.”