‘It was spine tingling’
FEBRUARY 6, 1952. Young Malcolm Tanner was playing football at his Bristol school. ‘In the far distance,’ he recalls, ‘a teacher was making his way slowly towards us. He had words with our games master, who then came over and said: “Sorry boys, we’ve got to go in. The King’s died.” I have to say we were very annoyed at having to stop playing.’
At Westminster Abbey Choir School, James Wilkinson was in a Latin lesson when ‘we noticed the flag on Victoria Tower in the Palace of Westminster was at half mast. Then the headmaster informed us the King had died. My first reaction was one of excitement that there’d be new postage stamps and coins to collect.’
