Pom in Oz with Derek Goforth: Even though I am not a monarchist, the Queen’s death has left me in mourning

I am not a monarchist and have made that quite clear in a few of my opinion pieces over the years. But that is not to say that the passing of the Queen has not affected me. I am still in support of an Australian republic, but at the same time watching all the genuine grief being poured out across the globe and especially back in my homeland, I can see why people don’t agree with me. My family are big royalists and have openly expressed grief and loss, but this has been especially poignant as our family also suffered a recent bereavement. I honestly think Britain is about to experience the biggest period of mourning it has seen in modern times, even surpassing the death of Diana all those years ago. Schools will close, businesses will shut for the day and all laughter will cease across the nation — it’s galvanised a people like never before. But are people mourning the death of a woman or is it much, much bigger than that? I believe the answer is a simple yes. The Queen’s passing is the mourning of the end of an era, the end of a symbol that came to mean a lot of things to a lot of people. People’s grief will come from their own attachments and connections, to which the Queen and the monarchy in general may have been a linchpin. To many Poms, the Queen represented stability, security and the essence of being a Brit — the stiff upper lip. She was a symbol for fortitude and keeping one’s “cool” when all around us lost theirs. I have to admit, I do admire the way she has handled her wayward offspring and the calm and collected composure she has shown even under extreme duress. She may have had lavish privilege since she was born, but at least she did do a “job” for the nation. I could list a whole bunch of royals who do nothing other than sit on their backsides and collect a huge allowance from the taxpayers. I have not missed being in the UK for the past 12 years, I feel a culture is developing over there that I really would rather not be part of. I feel the Queen’s passing is another element of a more stable age that has now left us. The fiasco of British, Australian and American politics over the past decade has at least shown us that having a head of state that sits apart from them is not a bad thing. Perhaps it was fitting that her last official act was to swear in another prime minister to one of the most unpopular governments of the modern era? Am I mourning? Yes, I actually think I am, but not for the person (which is not meant to sound callous, as I do feel for her relatives). I am mourning for the passing of an era and mourning for what lies before us. I am mourning for a part of my childhood, adolescence and adulthood that has now moved on.