WHATEVER you may feel about the royal family, only the most cold-hearted of republicans would not have the greatest sympathy for them today.

They are, again, a family in crisis, only this time it is not of their own making, and not of the media's hyping. It is entirely natural and, as they are first and foremost human beings, it is the sort of emotional crisis that could engulf any family anywhere in the country. And, because they are human beings, their feelings at the loss of a beloved sister and daughter, and their concerns about a visibly ailing mother and grandmother are bound to be exactly the same as those of any ordinary family struggling through a similar trial.

The weight of the world watching today's funeral may be heavy for them, but, hopefully, they can draw some strength from it. Many is the time that ordinary families have gathered after a funeral and consoled each other by saying "we've given them the best possible send off". But they often feel, in their heart of hearts, a little insulted that there weren't more people in the chilly church, or that the world didn't in some way stop turning to mark the passing of a person who valiantly fought the good fight until they could fight no more.

Princess Margaret, though, will receive the sort of send-off that many of us secretly wish for our own loved ones: there will be items on the news and no one going about their humdrum day-to-day business will ignore her funeral cortege as it passes by.

It is also worth noting that today's funeral also marks a little step in the modernising of the royal family. It is the first time that a senior royal has been cremated since Princess Louise, one of Queen Victoria's daughters, in 1939. The family is slowly moving towards an ordinary way of life - and, in this case, death.

So, today, we should have nothing but sympathy for them, and especially for the Queen Mother who, whatever you think of her lofty status in life, is once again showing extraordinary pluck and courage.

Our thoughts are with them.