Portsmouth April 2021 review - city mourns Prince Philip and celebrates key vaccine milestone

Images of the Queen sitting stoically alone at the duke’s funeral were beamed across the globe, as she mourned the loss of her life partner.

In Portsmouth, the 99-year-old duke’s death was marked by a 41-gun naval salute, with one round ringing out every minute for 40 minutes in a display witnessed by thousands of people.

Tributes poured out across the area from shocked residents to cabinet ministers and city leaders.

Suella Braverman, Fareham MP, hailed Prince Philip as ‘one of the Great British heroes’ of our time.

‘Prince Philip’s life was truly exceptional,’ the attorney general said at the time. ‘From his escape from Greece aboard HMS Calypso in a cot fashioned out of an old fruit box, to his heroism in the allied invasion of Sicily, his devotion to the Commonwealth and our Queen and his philanthropy epitomised by the Duke of Edinburgh Award, Prince Philip’s life has been marked by an absolute and unparalleled devotion to the people of the United Kingdom.

‘Today marks the passing of one of the great heroes of Britain.’

It was a sentiment shared by John and Joyce Lisseman, who said they were heartbroken for the Queen’s loss of a partner of more than 70 years.

John said: ‘Prince Philip has done a wonderful job for the country and he will be remembered for a very long time. God bless his soul.’

Joyce added: ‘The world is grieving.’

Days before the duke’s death, shops, gyms and hairdressers were celebrating after being given the long-awaited go-ahead to reopen following months of lockdown heartache.

Firms had been shut since Christmas as coronavirus infections ran rampant and the death toll hit nightmarish highs.

But during a televised address on April 5, Boris Johnson finally gave the green light for the remaining ‘non-essential’ outlets to reopen on April 12.

Business owners revelled in the news, hailing it as ‘the light at the end of a dark tunnel’.

Laura Ott, director of Hair Ott, said it meant she could finally reopen their branches in Cosham, Waterlooville and Whiteley – just a day before the company marked its 45th anniversary.

She said: ‘We feel relieved. We’re just really keen to get open again. You can see light at the end of the tunnel now.’

The news was met with joy from shoppers, too, who braved snow and rain to splash out the cash.

Hundreds of people flooded Commercial Road, queuing patiently to finally step foot inside Primark after months of abstinence.

Michelle Leibrick queued in the wintry conditions with her husband Andy for an hour. She said: ‘It’s nice to be back with people shopping again. It feels strange to be back but lovely to be out again after all this time.’

The sense of optimism was shared, too, with some of the city’s cultural gems as they celebrated receiving a ‘life-saving’ £1.1m grant from the government following a bleak winter of lockdown.

Then-culture secretary Oliver Dowden announced the package of support as part of a huge £1.57bn rescue fund to help the nation’s struggling heritage and arts community.

Among the lucky winners included the Mary Rose Trust, which runs Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth, which clinched £327,652.

Dominic Jones, chief executive of the trust, said the cash was a ‘vital lifeline’ for the museum.

As the month came to an end, the area hit a massive milestone in the flight against Covid-19 as it notched up its 100,000th person to receive their first dose of the vaccine.

The figure was met with delight by Portsmouth’s public health boss, Helen Atkinson, who hailed it as ‘fantastic’ news.

‘It's an amazing achievement within the time frame and is testament to the hard work of so many people,’ she said.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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