(p. A12) Amid the outpouring of grief after the death of queen Elizabeth II at 96, Britons have laid many a tribute in parks and outside palace gates in England. But the charity responsible for all the royal acres in the land has a plea: Bouquets of flowers are ever so lovely, but please skip the teddy bears and balloons.
The charity, Royal Parks, asks well-wishers to bring only “organic or compostable material” . . .
Mourners have already contributed stuffed Paddington Bears, . . .
Paddington is an especially popular tribute because of a video released around the time of Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in June [2022], in which the queen and the bear have tea and discuss keeping marmalade sandwiches on hand for emergencies. (He keeps one in his hat; she, supposedly, kept one in her purse.)
But Royal Parks says mourners should choose their tributes “in the interests of sustainability.”
For the full story, see:
JOSEPH, YONETTE. “Flowers, Yes. But Bears? Please Don’t.” The New York Times (Saturday, September 13, 2022): A12.
(Note: ellipses, and bracketed year, added.)
(Note: after substantial search, I could not find that the article had been posted online by the NYT.)