Picture gallery: Sorrow on The Mall

The Queen Mother's body has been returned to London.

BBC News Online photographer Phil Coomes joined the hundreds of mourners lining the route of the sad procession.

People of all ages came to witness the final few yards of the Queen Mother's journey to St James's Palace

Despite the sadness of the occasion, the band of the Scots Guards offered a rousing musical tribute

The crowds fell silent as the cortege swept slowly down The Mall. Many gently applauded as it passed

Draped in her standard, the Queen Mother's coffin was reverently carried through the doors of St James's

Many found the event deeply moving. "She was a mother and grandmother to us all," said one bystander