Queen's Lonely Seat at Philip Funeral Was 'Tipping Point' for Boris Johnson

Queen Elizabeth II's lonely appearance at the funeral of Prince Philip in 2021, as she socially distanced in line with Boris Johnson's COVID restrictions, was the "tipping point" for the prime minister, according to one Brit interviewed in a now viral video.

The queen was photographed at Philip's funeral sitting by herself, while members of her family remained socially distanced from the grieving monarch in line with government directions.

In the viral video uploaded to social media platform TikTok by channel @politicsjoe, a member of the public said that seeing the queen in that moment was "very, very bad" and was compounded given that illegal social gatherings were revealed to have taken place at 10 Downing Street the night before the funeral.

The TikTok video, which has been viewed over 140,000 times on the platform, was filmed on Thursday after members of the public gathered outside Downing Street on hearing the news that Johnson would resign as prime minister.

The premier's announcement came following the resignations of over 50 members of the Conservative government over his handling of sexual assault allegations made against a member of his party, who he later promoted.

When the allegations were leaked to the press, No. 10 initially denied that Johnson knew about them before he promoted member of parliament Chris Pincher to the position of deputy chief whip. This was later revealed to be incorrect, as Johnson had been briefed about the allegations before he made the appointment, according to the BBC.

Despite winning the largest Conservative majority in a general election since the 1980s in 2019, Johnson's time as prime minister didn't last three years.

For many Brits the government's response to the COVID pandemic saw Johnson's popularity waver.

To the unidentified woman featured in the @politicsjoe TikTok interview, finding out that the government had been breaking its own rules on social distancing measures at the same time as the queen and the rest of the country had been following them properly was a "final straw."

"What was the tipping point for you with Boris Johnson," an interviewer asked, "was there one straw that broke the camel's back for you?"

"Yes," the unidentified woman responded, "the picture of the queen sitting on her own at Prince Philip's funeral. I just felt terribly sorry."

She continued: "I wouldn't say that I'm particularly a royalist but I just felt that that was very, very bad and things were happening, they were having a whale of a time here [Downing Street] and the poor queen was having to sit on her own which was the same as hundreds of thousands of other people, she spoke for us all that day I think."

One video commenter posted: "In her defence, it did illustrate, very publicly, all the sacrifices that everyone was making, whilst, we later learnt, Number 10 partied throughout."

With another writing: "The queen sitting alone was a perfect encapsulation of the pain so many other families went through while the Tory parties happened."

Revelations of illegal Downing Street social gatherings during the U.K.'s strict COVID lockdowns were dubbed the "partygate" scandal, with formal enquiries into the lawbreaking being undertaken by Parliament and the Metropolitan Police.

In January 2022, it was revealed that two parties had taken place at Downing Street on April 16, 2021, the evening before Philip's funeral. The prince died aged 99 on April 9.

After widespread criticism, Downing Street issued an apology to the queen with a spokesperson saying: "It is deeply regrettable that this took place at a time of national mourning and Number 10 has apologised to the Palace."

After the police investigation into the incidents, 126 fines were issued to 83 individuals, including Johnson and his wife, Carrie. They who were fined £50 ($60) each for attending a birthday party for the prime minister in June 2020.

The queen's appearance at the funeral for her husband of 73 years made headlines around the globe and has become one of the most poignant images of her reign.

Despite mourners at the April 2021 funeral being limited to just 30, a service of thanksgiving was held for the prince at Westminster Abbey in March 2022 with over 1,800 people in attendance, including royalty from across Europe.