Teenagers in Colchester on what the Queen's death meant to them

Once best known as Britain's oldest recorded town, Colchester was named one of the country's newest cities to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. We asked five teenagers there how they reacted to news of the Queen's death.

'I didn't believe it at first'

Bettina Mladoniczky says the first thing her family did after moving to the UK was visit Buckingham Palace

Bettina Mladoniczky, 18, learned of the Queen's death during a date with her boyfriend.

"I was out with my boyfriend and his mum called us to say the Queen had died," she says. "I didn't believe it at first and I was like, 'what?'.

"It was shocking because just the day or so before she was at work meeting the new prime minister."

Having moved to the UK eight years ago from Romania, Ms Mladoniczky says she does not know much about the Queen or the Royal Family.

However, she says her mother has been deeply moved by the death of the Queen.

"My mum really liked the Queen and had watched documentaries about her. She was following the news closely.

"The first thing we did when we moved here was visit Buckingham Palace. For so many people it is the first thing people do when they come to London."

'I was upset by the news'

Alyssa Izhar, 18, says news of the Queen's death came as a shock

Alyssa Izhar, 18, wants to go to medical school and was doing her University Clinical Aptitude Test (Ucat) when she learned the Queen had died.

"I got a notification from one of my friends on my laptop saying the Queen had passed away," she says. "I was literally at the end of the exam when I found out.

"I knew beforehand that it might happen because of what was on the news and so on and then my mum had it on the television.

"I was upset by the news and it came as quite a shock actually - though my father had told me her health had deteriorated."

'My parents took me to the Diamond Jubilee'

Will Bird says he is sceptical about the monarchy but respected the Queen

Will Bird, 18, has fond memories of a childhood trip to London.

"I don't remember her coming to Colchester," he says, "but I remember when I was a kid, my parents took me to the Diamond Jubilee and that is my only memory of seeing her.

"That was in London and I remember the big boats coming through as we waited on the Thames. I was eight years old.

"It was really good and you could tell it was a spectacle and an important thing for many people."

He says while he is sceptical about the monarchy and its history, he respected the way in which the Queen fulfilled her duties.

"She kept her views to herself and I think that helped a lot," he says.

He says it will be interesting to see what her death means for the future of the monarchy in the 21st Century.

'My mum was very upset'

Olivia Braddock says her family were "shocked" by the death of the Queen

Olivia Braddock, 18, learned of the Queen's death while watching the news.

"We had the news on throughout the whole day, basically," she says. "We were checking it all the time asking, 'how's the Queen?'.

"My mum loves the Queen."

She says her family enjoyed a Platinum Jubilee cake together earlier in the year and when confirmation of her death came through they were "shocked".

"My mum was very upset and was telling us all to be quiet," she says.

"It will be strange when all the things... coins and passports and so on - will be changed over to the King."

'I wasn't really sure if it was real at first'

Alexandra Palade says she comes from a family of immigrants who have respect for the Queen

Alexandra Palade learned the Queen had died through social media.

"I wasn't really sure if it was real at first," says the 18-year-old, who is originally from Romania. "I had to go to other platforms to see if it was genuine or not because there have been hoaxes in the past.

"I'm from a family of immigrants so our feeling is one of respect because we know for other people this will be having a big impact.

"I feel sad about it and sympathetic to other people."

Photography: Laurence Cawley

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