Yes, I watched it. I was surprised to find SVT1 covering the whole thing, here in Sweden. And Dagens Nyheter devoting its front page to it this morning.

Apparently foreigners admire us for this sort of thing – ‘no-one else does it so well.’ And yes, it was pretty amazing, in a theatrical kind of way. I particularly liked the performance of Penny Mordaunt, Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Privy Council: the first woman to carry the Sword of State – a symbol of the king’s authority – during the procession. She did it well. Statuesquely, I thought. (And with even a glimpse of cleaveage.) Could she be the next Leader of the Conservative Party? She looks the part better than any of the last four. – Thank goodness it wasn’t the previous Leader of the House performing the role. Imagine Jacob Rees Mogg carrying the Sword of State – accompanied no doubt by Nursie. He would have loved it. But he would hardly have conveyed the dignity that our buxom Penny did.

But really: how pathetic! Having lost an empire, our industry, our welfare state and many of our proudest liberties, this – our flummery – is all we as a nation are left with. I felt embarrassed, as well as impressed; and not at all ‘proud’.

Not that I’m quite a republican. My ideal would be a much scaled-down hereditary monarchy: a bit like the Swedes’. I wouldn’t trust British electors not to choose someone far more embarrassing even than Charles III: a footballer, a popular singer, or a clown like Boris. Look what happened to America in 2016.