NEWS of the Queen’s death was given to one Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole committee meeting by the council’s chief executive.

Graham Farrant joined the audit and governance meeting online to break the news around 35 minutes into the session.

Committee chairman John Beesley decided to continue with the business but urged councillors to keep what they had to say to a minimum, later inviting questions for officers to be submitted by email.

WATCH THE MOMENT IN THE MEETING BELOW

Cllr Anne Filer said: “This is a sad, terribly sad, moment for all of us. Even someone of my years she has always been there. She is like everyone’s grandmother, everyone’s mother…it’s the end of an amazing era and we’ll all be very much poorer.

“I feel really very, very sad. I feel as if it’s a member of my own family.”