Trudeau, 4 former PMs among Canada’s delegation for Queen’s funeral

Canada will have a total of 15 delegates attending Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.

The group includes celebrities and former prime ministers.

Justin Trudeau and Governor General Mary Simon will be joined by former prime ministers Stephen Harper, Paul Martin, Jean Chrétien, and Kim Campbell, as well as former governors general Michaëlle Jean and David Johnston will be in attendance. Assembly of First Nations National Chief RoseAnne Archibald, President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Natan Obed, and President of the Métis National Council Cassidy Caron, will also be part of the delegation.

“Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was steadfast in her service to Canada, the Commonwealth, and its people. It is with a heavy heart, but deep appreciation, that we will come together to honour Her Majesty – whose lifetime of public service is an extraordinary example to us all,” Trudeau said in a statement.

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Meanwhile, taking part in a procession of recipients of national honours as a part of the funeral will be Order of Canada recipients, including actress Sandra Oh, Olympian Mark Tewksbury, and Quebec singer Gregory Charles.

“It’s such an honour, I was very touched (to be invited),” Tewksbury said.

The 54-year-old said while their “paths crossed a number of times,” he only met the late queen once when she came through the athletes village at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria.

“I had that famous minute of small talk,” said Tewksbury, who won a pair of gold medals each at the 1986 and 1990 Commonwealth Games. “I must admit, I thought ‘Oh, what’s the big deal?’ Because I’d seen it from afar, at the Commonwealth Games in ’86, and she was often in the stands and swimming. But she just had that presence. It’s such a cliche, but I suddenly was tongue-tied, butterflies. There was a presence. She obviously wore her duty so incredibly well.”

The 54-year-old Tewksbury was in Manchester at a conference when the queen died on Sept. 8 at 96. The Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle had given the opening address at the conference four days earlier.

“So, I felt the sadness. And then our event got immediately cancelled, because that’s royal protocol. I’m still in a little bit of shock, to be honest,” said Tewksbury, who had flown home to Calgary after the cancellation.

The Queen’s state funeral in London is set for Monday. Following the funeral, there will be a national commemoration ceremony taking place in Ottawa, which will be attended by former prime ministers Brian Mulroney and Joe Clark. They will be joined by members of parliament and other dignitaries.

On Sept. 13, Trudeau announced Monday, Sep. 19, would be a federal holiday and national day of mourning in Canada.

The holiday will be for federal employees, with provincial and territorial governments making their own decisions for remaining workers.

Canadians were previously given a day off to mourn King George VI following his sudden death in 1952 — the last time a monarch passed away.

In addition to the commemoration ceremony, there will also be a military parade and gun salutes in Ottawa Monday.

CityNews will have full coverage of Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral in London on all platforms Monday.