The King and Prince of Wales have made a surprise visit to The Queue for the Queen's lying in state.

They left Buckingham Palace unexpectedly at about noon in separate cars.

Shortly afterwards they arrived at Lambeth Bridge where people were nearing the end of their hours-long slow walk to Westminster Hall.

Repeated spontaneous cries of God Save the King, Long live the King, God Bless the Prince of Wales, and cheers rang out as King Charles and his older son made their way gradually down the line of The Queue, shaking hands, asking if the queuers were all right and thanking them for coming.

The King had been expected to spend his day meeting heads of state, foreign royalty and other VIPs who have flown in to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth on Monday.

At the time the royal father and son visited, the Queue time was down to 14 hours from 25 hours during the night. Its end is currently in Southwark Park, five miles from Westminster Hall.

King Charles left after some time, but Prince William remained, listening to tales of life in the Queue and apologising for their wait time and the cold temperatures overnight.

So far today, the Queue has not been closed as it was yesterday, but the Department of Culture, Media and Sport was urging people not to join it.

Earlier the King and the Prince of Wales visited Scotland Yard, the headquarters of the emergency services operation during the mourning period and the Queen's funeral on Monday.