Around a dozen Thai mourners dressed in black sat outside a Bangkok hospital where the former Queen Sirikit, whose death was announced early on Saturday, had been receiving treatment.

Among them was store owner Tanyaporn Arammetha, 65, who was 15 when she first met the former queen during a royal visit in Chonburi province south of Bangkok.

She recalled Queen Sirikit calling her "little girl" and asking her if she had eaten -- a gesture that left a lasting impression of her warmth.

Like many across Thailand, she heard the news of the death of Queen Sirikit, the mother of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, at around 2 am on Saturday.

The royal family is venerated in Thailand, treated by many as semi-divine figures and lavished with glowing media coverage and portraits hanging in public and in pr

See Full Page