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The church for King Harald's funeral service is situated in the city centre of Oslo, and was consecrated in 1697.

The cathedral was previously known as Vår Frelsers Kirke, meaning "our saviour's church", and is comprised of Dutch bricks painted yellow and red.

Oslo Cathedral has also hosted several royal weddings since Norway's monarchy was restored in 1905 after the country gained independence from Sweden.

This includes the nuptials of the new King Haakon and Queen Mette-Marit, as well as the late King Harald's and Queen Sonja's.

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Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor

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One of the defining images so far of the service is of Queen Mette-Marit wiping her eyes alongside the rest of the royal family close to King Harald's coffin. The new queen missed King Haakon's swearing-in ceremony last week because of "complications" after her recent lung transplant.

On the far left of the front row is Harald's widow Queen Sonja, next to King Haakon. To Mette-Marit's right are Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus.

Queen Sonja laid a red rose on Harald's coffin and bowed before returning to her seat.

Behind the royal family in the second row are King Haakon's sister, Princess Märtha Louise and her husband Durek Verrett, alongside their three children. Verrett has just recovered from a kidney transplant last month.

Queen Mette-Marit's son Marius Borg Høiby had earlier arrived at the cathedral with Märtha Louise's children. He is not a member of the royal family.

Image source, Lise Åserud/NTB

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Norway's King Harald V died last month aged 89 after 35 years on the throne.

He will be widely remembered as a popular and reforming figure who modernised the monarchy, broke with tradition by marrying a commoner and served as a unifying figure at Norway's most difficult moments.

Royal observers say he was down-to-earth, respected and beloved, describing him as a "grandfather" of the nation and the "people's king" - a title also used by his father King Olav V.

But more recently, King Harald and his family have faced personal challenges and scandal.

Marius Borg Høiby - the Norwegian crown princess's son - was convicted of multiple offences in June including two counts of rape.

Høiby is not a royal figure himself, but grew up within the family after his mother married King Haakon when he was four.

In another blow, documents were released days before the trial began revealed his mother Mette-Marit's frequent contact with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The crises surrounding the monarchy have had an effect on its popularity. One poll for newspaper Aftenposten suggested support had dropped from 72% in 2024 to 54%.

Read more about the late king in our profile.

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King Harald's funeral service is being led by Preses (Presiding Bishop) Olav Fykse Tveit and will follow the Church of Norway's order of service for funerals.

The Bishop of Oslo, Sunniva Gylver, will also take part.

The palace said cathedral organist Marcus André Berg will also lead the musical programme together with the Oslo Cathedral Choir.

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King Harald's funeral procession has arrived at Oslo Cathedral.

The service is now taking place, after a minute’s silence was observed across Norway.

The silence was marked by three strokes of the bells at the beginning and end.

Royal guards were seen carrying his casket up the steps of the church.

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You can follow live coverage of the service, which is in Norwegian, by clicking watch live above.

As we mentioned earlier, the guest list for King Harald's funeral is somewhat of a who's who of Europe's royalty.

The Prince of Wales and Princess Anne are attending, alongside members of the Danish, Swedish and Dutch royal families.

Earlier this morning, Belgium's King Philippe and Queen Mathilde, as well as Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia were spotted on coaches at Oslo's airport, ahead of being transported to the city.

It appeared that Prince William was on the same coach as the Belgian royals.

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During the funeral procession from the Royal Palace to Oslo Cathedral, King Haakon, his sister Princess Märtha Louise and his children Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus followed King Harald V's coffin on foot.

Behind them, Haakon's wife Queen Mette-Marit and his widowed mother, Queen Sonja, followed in a car, a press release from Norway's royal household confirms.

Mette-Marit has faced health challenges in recent months, having been diagnosed with a form of pulmonary fibrosis in 2018. In June, she underwent a successful lung transplant in Oslo.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and King Abdullah II of Jordan are among the 30 royals, 17 non-royal heads of state and five foreign prime ministers in the funeral procession from the Royal Palace to Oslo Cathedral.

The Prince of Wales and Princess Anne are also at the funeral, and were pictured walking in the procession.

A press release issued by Norway's royal palace this morning confirmed that members of the royal families in Sweden, Monaco, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Denmark, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Japan and Greece would also be present.

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Other non-royal heads of state at the funeral are from Germany, Lithuania, Moldova, Estonia, Albania, Canada, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Finland, Iceland, Georgia, Greece, Poland, Ireland and Hungary.

The Danish, Moroccan, Swedish, Thai and French prime ministers are also in attendance.

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King Harald's coffin is being transported from the Royal Palace to Oslo Cathedral ahead of the funeral service. King Haakon VIII and the Norwegian royal family are leading the procession as crowds of people line the streets, with members of the Norwegian military joining in the march.

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The route of King Harald V's funeral procession is beginning at the Royal Palace in the capital, before moving east towards Oslo Cathedral.

The church is where Harald married Queen Sonja on 29 August 1968.

From there, the procession will move south-west through the city centre to reach Akershus Fortress.

The waterfront structure is where the king will be laid to rest in the Royal Mausoleum beneath the castle church, with the fortress itself having overlooked the city for more than 700 years.

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The Prince of Wales will attend King Harald’s funeral as well as Princess Anne, who is there in a personal capacity as godmother to Norway’s new monarch.

Royal sources say Prince William's attendance, representing his father King Charles, follows the convention that the monarch does not usually go to the funeral of another head of state.

At the funeral, alongside Prince William, will be the widowed Queen Sonja, members of the Norwegian royal family including new King Haakon VIII, and other European royals.

King Frederik X and Queen Mary of Denmark will also be attending, the Danish royal house has confirmed, as will King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden.

The Royal House of the Netherlands has said King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima will also be travelling to Oslo for the funeral, as will their eldest daughter, Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange, and the former queen, Princess Beatrix.

The service will be followed by a private burial in Norway's royal mausoleum in the Akershus Fortress.

Lars Bevanger
in Oslo

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King Harald V’s funeral procession has just emerged from the royal palace, his coffin resting on a ceremonial low gun carriage pulled by a black military Mercedes 4x4 and flanked by pallbearers from members of the late King’s personal staff.

In front are mounted police, the King’s Royal Guard and the Norwegian Army Band, playing funeral music.

King Haakon VIII is walking behind his father’s coffin together with his children Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus, and his sister Princess Märtha Louise. His wife, Queen Mette-Marit, and mother, Queen Sonja, are travelling in a royal car.

The first of 21 mourning cannon salutes can also be heard from nearby Akershus Fortress - the final resting place for King Harald V, as well as his parents and grand-parents.

A large number of royals from other European countries, Japan and the Middle East are also part of the procession, along with many visiting heads-of-state. The Prince of Wales is attending the funeral alongside Princess Anne.

Apart from the funeral music and cannon, it is remarkably silent despite the huge crowds.

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Proceedings will begin this morning with ceremonial troops assembling at Akershus Fortress, the medieval castle where King Harald will ultimately be laid to rest.

A procession will then take place, carrying King Harald’s coffin from the Royal Palace - where he has been lying in state - to Oslo Cathedral.

The cathedral is where the funeral ceremony will take place at around 13:00 local time (12:00 BST), after a minute’s silence is observed across Norway. This will be marked by three strokes of the bells at the beginning and end.

The funeral will include memorial addresses from the president of the Norwegian Parliament and the prime minister, and a candle-lighting ceremony involving representatives of different faiths.

After the funeral, the coffin will process to Akershus Fortress for a private ceremony in the mausoleum.

Other moments of ceremony during the day will include a 21-gun funeral salute, and a balcony appearance from the new King Haakon VIII.

Lars Bevanger
in Oslo

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Tens of thousands of people are already lining the route an hour before the late King Harald’s funeral procession gets underway. It will follow a 1.5km (0.9m) long stretch from the royal palace to Oslo Cathedral.

Elisabeth Oksum turned up a full four hours early, telling me it was important for her to pay her respects to a king she described as a moderniser.

About 1,900 members of all three branches of the Norwegian army have just taken up positions lining both sides of the entire route, where Norwegian flags are flying at half mast.

Oslo city centre is closed to all traffic, including bikes and electric scooters, and police are manning checkpoints that people must use to access the route. The sun is shining - a good thing as umbrellas have also been banned today.

More than 200,000 people are expected to try to get a glimpse of the procession as it gets underway. Those who can't get close enough, can watch the entire funeral on nine giant screens spread around the city centre.

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The day after King Harald's death, his son Haakon VIII paid a warm tribute to the man who sat on Norway's throne for 35 years.

The new king thanked him for "being such a good dad" to him and his sister, Princess Märtha Louise, in an at-times emotional televised address.

He described the late Norwegian king as a "warm and funny grandfather" to his six grandchildren and a "loving and caring husband" to his widow, Queen Sonja. Harald V and his wife would have celebrated their 58th wedding anniversary the day after his death.

Harald V had "always stayed true" to his "values and commitments", the new king stressed.

"He constantly reminded us in the family that each of us must do things in our own way. Find our own style. Be ourselves," Haakon said.

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The funeral service for King Harald V of Norway will take place later this morning in Oslo, nearly two weeks after his death at the age of 89.

Representatives from several European royal houses and governments are expected to join the new King, Haakon VIII, and the Norwegian royal family to bid farewell to the much-loved late monarch.

The Prince of Wales will attend the funeral alongside Princess Anne, who is there in a personal capacity as godmother to the new Norwegian king.

Harald, who was seen as a popular, modernising figure, was on the Norwegian throne for 35 years.

Large crowds are expected as the funeral procession takes place, followed by a service at Oslo Cathedral.

Thousands have queued to pay their respects in recent days during the late king’s lying in state.

We’ll bring you updates as the day unfolds.

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