Late-night talk show hosts James Corden, Trevor Noah and Jimmy Kimmel have paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday (September 8).
The Queen died aged 96 at Balmoral on Thursday afternoon, bringing her 70-year reign to an end. “The King and the Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow,” a statement from Buckingham Palace read.
Following the announcement, Corden paid tribute during the opening segment of The Late Late Show, describing her as “universally adored” and representing the “good in this world”.
“She is the only queen most of us have ever known,” Corden said. “We viewed her as immortal, an essential part of the fabric of our world.”
James offers his gratitude today to the late Queen Elizabeth II pic.twitter.com/EalmquUFwn
— The Late Late Show with James Corden (@latelateshow) September 9, 2022
He added: “She represented good in this world, living a life of honour, a life dedicated to service, dedicated to bettering the life of others. And it’s always felt as if she was there for all of us, for 70 years, she never wavered.”
Corden went on to call the Queen a “guiding light” in a “world of uncertainty”, adding: “She was always gracious, always dignified, always a shining example of leadership. She represented stability in a world where so often it feels like the floor is shaking. Queen Elizabeth was unique. A life’s work never to be repeated.”
Trevor Noah, who hosts The Daily Show, started his opening segment by noting how “varied” reactions had been following her death.
“But whatever you think about the royal family or the monarchy, you’ve got to admit it’s insane how long Elizabeth sat on the throne,” Noah said.
Queen Elizabeth II has passed away and the reactions have been, let's say, varied. pic.twitter.com/w7u5jDtQV2
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) September 9, 2022
“That means she’s seen Adam West as Batman, Michael Keaton as Batman, Christian Bale as Batman, Ben Affleck as Batman, survived that, and then saw Robert Pattinson as Batman,” Noah joked. “And look, I’m sure there’s a better way to measure time than in Batman, but you get it. She’s been in the game for a minute.”
Jimmy Kimmel similarly used his opening monologue on Jimmy Kimmel Live! to discuss the news, jokingly giving a point of comparison for the show’s US audience.
“The Queen is known as England’s rock,” Kimmel said. “We don’t have a rock, the closest thing we have to a rock in America is The Rock.”
He added: “I feel like if you die anywhere on the FM radio dial… my goal is to make it a hot 97 or maybe even power 106, who knows.”
Kimmel then listed the number of people Queen Elizabeth II met over her reign, including Bill Clinton, JFK, Jennifer Lopez and the Spice Girls. “She stood up to fascists and she stood behind them,” Kimmel joked as a photo of her standing behind Donald Trump was shown.
Many figures across the entertainment world have paid tribute to the Queen, including Paul McCartney, Elton John and Harry Styles.
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