END OF THE ELZABETHAN ERA:

ABC News Breakfast co-hosts Michael Rowland and Lisa Millar have sparked controversy in London over some of their commentary overnight as tens of thousands of mourning Britons continue to file past the coffin of Queen Elizabeth 2 in Westminster Hall.

I’ve reprinted some of their dialogue below to let you be the judge! I personally thought it was just a bit of harmless banter between arguably Australia’s finest electronic media journalists but I’m still interested in hearing your views.

Rowland: Good to see you with me, Lisa but can I just say you look a little bit flushed? Bad flight over?

Millar: Thanks, Michael. The flight wasn’t too bad in business class but I’m maybe still a bit embarrassed over the tantrum I had to pull when I went into work early last week to find you had already been flown over here without me. I stamped a foot so hard I broke a heel.

Rowland: Don’t be. I broke a heel too when I carried on like a pork chop early last week when I heard only some nine Australia-based ABC journalists were being sent over and I wasn’t one of them. Even Probyn got the call before me. Unbelievable, really. What’s it up to now?

Millar: Well, once I convinced management of my need to be here because we make such an amazing team…

Rowland: Agreed.

Millar: I think I was number 21. It might be up in the 30s now.

Rowland: Well, bang goes the ABC being able to afford any new series of Bluey and another series of Countrywide. Still, at least we’re both here now and it sounds like we both kicked up quite a stink.

Millar: Speaking of quite a stink, have you been past the coffin yet?

Rowland: Beautiful seque there, Millar! You’re on fire!

Millar: Thanks, Michael. Don’t we work wonderfully as a team? But seriously, I’m starting to worry if the Queen is starting to go off a bit. We’re a week on from when she passed and there’s still days before the funeral.

Millar: Talk about Her Royal Highness!

Millar: Oh, Michael, what are we ever going to do with you and those puns of yours?

Rowland: I did notice that the mourners have been moving closer to the outside walls of this ancient hall as they’ve shuffled past to pay their respects. I’ve seen some of them holding their noses.

Millar: She was such a dear little biddy and at her great age, she was probably mostly skin and bones so I don’t suppose there’s a lot to her to go off in the first place.

Rowland: Which is probably for the best because there doesn’t appear to be any refrigeration pipes leading up to the coffin.

Millar: I still can’t get over the tiny size of her coffin. How tall do you reckon she was by the end? And who do you think will inherit all her clothes?

Rowland: They might fit Princess Charlotte for another year, maybe two?

Millar: What else can we talk about?

Rowland: Oh, we’ll pad it out brilliantly as we always do. We’ve only got another week of this to go.

Millar: We do make a wonderful team, don’t we?

Rowland: Yes we do. And thanks for that comment. When you work in the pressure cooker of electronic newsmaking, it’s so vital that the talent praise one another as often as possible.

Millar: When are you heading back, by the way?

Rowland: Monday week. Why do you ask?

Millar: There will be hell to pay if I’m send back any earlier, that’s all!

Rowland: And nor should you be. We make a wonderful team!

Millar: Thanks, Michael. Won’t Charles make a wonderful King of Australia and Queensland?