My son tells me in the UK Queen Elizabeth II’s face is everywhere.

The same is not true in Lyon. But I did stumble across this impressive display.

It is time for the furniture to arrive. Not ideal given it’s the morning after the Queen’s death but I thought I could work from home at the start of the day.

Now remember the removal firm has not reserved any parking outside the building and there are no places.

So the first question the lovely removal man asks me is whether I can move my cars. I tell him; “I don’t have a car.”

They then ask me about my washing machine and drier – which we haven’t brought with us – so I begin to worry it isn‘t our load. But when I see my bike it obviously is.

The first few things come up the stairs while we wait for la grue – the lift that will bring most of it through the windows.

Amazingly we get a stroke of luck when a car moves and la grue grabs its spot.

The driver extends the crane up to our window but there is one small issue – that is not our window!

A discussion ensues and the man with la grue says that is the only window he can bring it through because of the trees. So can I knock on my neighbour’s door – who I have never met – and ask her if we can bring all our worldly possessions through her living room window?

Fortunately Patrizia is in and even more fortunately she says yes. It helps that the Queen died yesterday and she feels it is her duty to help an Englishman in distress.

After about three hours it is all in. As I go outside to get the last boxes for le cave the police turn up. They ask if we have a permit for the lift. I explain that I asked the removal firm three times to sort it out but they didn’t.

The female officer is angry and talks about a €1500 fine. Her colleague in the back asks me where I am from. Angleterre. “Ah toutes mes condoleances,” – he says. Once again, in the words of Paul Burrell, the Queen has come through for me.

Patrizia – who describes herself as une super voisine- invites us round for nibbles and drinks at 7pm. She laid on quite a spread. We are very lucky to have her.

Our lovely New Malden house has a new resident.

Our new tenants moved in today – becoming the second family to ever live in the house. I hope they enjoy it as much as we did.

Our removal has gone from bad to much worse.

A customs delay meant our delivery was held up and the proposed new delivery time of 7pm didn’t work – because the company did not have la grue – that would enable our furniture to come up through the window. And we couldn’t let them bring it all up the stairs at that time of night.

So we had to work out another date for delivery and the removal firm then had to rehire the crane to do the job.

The problem then was the removal firm said it had incurred further costs out of its control and to arrange a new delivery they wanted us to pay £1700 more! Cath did not take this lying down and after a heated phone conversation we now have to pay £350 extra for a delivery this Friday.

It seems odd to me that we have to pay anything to get a delivery later than the day we were promised. And it remains to be seen if all will go well on Friday.

But in the meantime, here’s some better news:

We were expecting our furniture this morning but a text from the removal firm informed us that it had been held up at customs and only made it across early this morning.

Cath rang them to find out what was going on and they said it should be with us at 7pm tonight. Cath told them that was too late because of the neighbours so now it looks like it will be tomorrow.

At least the gas man arrived as planned and we now have hot water.

It also meant I could go to work.

I booked Sunday lunch at the Epona restaurant in the Intercontinental Hotel for Cath as she missed out when my dad visited. The food was as lovely as last time but this time we were seated next to a real local celebrity.

He was invited to tour the kitchens if he wanted, people were taking selfies with him but we had no idea who he was.

Cath asked the waiter after the celeb had left and it turns out it was…… Jean-Michel Aulas no less. Who that? Only the president of Olympique Lyonnais.

We are both slightly worried that with our lorry-load of furniture due to arrive tomorrow there is no sign of temporary parking restrictions signs outside our house.

How are they going to move our furniture up la grue without being able to park right outside?

I have contacted the removal firm to let them know but so far, no reply. Fingers crossed.