Irish mother and daughter describe ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ moment seeing Pope’s remains

By Aine Fox, PA Social Affairs Correspondent, in Vatican City

A mother and daughter from Ireland who were among thousands in an hours-long queue to pay their last respects to Pope Francis have described it as “a special moment” and a privilege to be among mourners.

Marguerite O’Leary and her teenage daughter Ellen stood for more than five hours on Wednesday to be among the first of the public to see the late pontiff’s remains inside St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.

Primary school teacher Mrs O’Leary, from Ennis in County Clare, said she felt it was their “duty to represent the people of Ireland when we were lucky enough to be here” in the days following the Pope’s death on Easter Monday.

The family only discovered when they landed in Rome on Monday for a holiday that the head of the Catholic Church had died earlier that morning.

Speaking to the PA news agency as she left St Peter’s Square after viewing Francis’s open coffin, Mrs O’Leary said: “We felt it was our duty to represent the people of Ireland when we were lucky enough to be here, and to take the time and the trouble.

“It’s a pilgrimage, really, to Rome.

“And even though the Pope is no longer with us, at least we were here to say goodbye to him and to pay our respects.”

Fourteen-year-old Ellen described the experience as “once in a lifetime”.

She said: “It was amazing to be in there. We were so lucky to be able to experience being in the basilica and seeing the Pope.

“I feel really lucky to be here at this time and to get to witness this because this is like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

The teenager described the interior of St Peter’s Basilica as “extraordinary”, after making her first visit to the church.

Her mother described the experience as “a special moment”, adding: “It’s a magnificent building.”

Despite standing in “fairly intense heat” from the sun for much of their time in the queue, Mrs O’Leary said they enjoyed good conversation with others they met along the way.

She said: “We chatted to other people, it helped the time. People were very friendly and very nice.”

There is a visible security presence in the area, with Italian police operating crowd control measures and checking bags at various points en route to St Peter’s Square.

While lay Catholics, nuns and priests ed the lengthy queue for the basilica on Wednesday, tourists milled around as usual, with parents pushing prams and couples taking pictures in the visitor hotspot.