Newspaper sales for shops in London on the weekend of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral rocketed, according to retailers in the capital.

The monarch’s funeral was held on 19 September following her passing on 8 September.

Dhiren Sheth, of The Pagoda Newsagent in Ealing, west London, said category sales in his store over the weekend and on the day of the Queen’s funeral went up by 70%.

“Supply volumes were up 30%, and I decided to keep the shop open for longer, closing at 2pm, while every other shop on the road closed earlier or did not open at all,” he said.

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“All the major newspapers sold very well, with The Times, The Guardian and The Telegraph being our top sellers.”

Devan Patel, from Nils in Hainault, Greater London, said newspaper sales in his store had been on a high for more than 10 days.

“Despite operating on reduced hours on Monday, our newspaper sales were incredibly good, with The Times and the Sunday Times selling out and copies of The Daily Telegraph selling quickly,” he added. “Overall sales across the category doubled.”

Gaurave Sood, of Neelam Post Office in Uxbridge, west London, added: “We had an increased number of customers who usually don’t buy newspapers, buying three copies each – last weekend’s sales were up by 60% at least.”

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