Channel 5 has been praised by viewers for showing The Emoji Movie and other children’s films during Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral.

The channel was the only major UK network not to show any footage of the historic funeral on Monday (September 19), which drew in over four billion viewers from across the world.

• READ MORE: Entertainment world reacts to the death of Queen Elizabeth II 

BBC One, BBC Two, ITV and Sky all broadcast the funeral live, while Channel 4 aired a documentary on the Queen.

Channel 5’s decision to instead play The Emoji Movie – the 2017 animation starring Patrick Stewart and James Corden – as well as other kids’ films such as Stuart Little and Ice Age, proved to be divisive on social media, with some criticising the move.

However, many viewers took to Twitter to praise the network for providing child-friendly alternatives on a day of national mourning.

“Channel 5 deserve a lot of respect for this,” one person wrote. “Airing an entire day’s worth of kid and family-friendly content to give us a break from wall-to-wall bleakness is a great move.”

Another tweeted: “Really don’t understand the criticism of Channel 5 for showing The Emoji Movie, Stuart Little etc during the queen’s funeral. What are kids of families who don’t have paid TV/streaming supposed to do otherwise, sit and watch white people in suits look overly sad for 6 hours?”

“To be fair, it’s good to see them doing something like this,” said another. “Most families will have 2 TVs so adults can watch it and children watch the film. It’s a shame BBC aren’t doing something similar with BBC3.”

Another added: “Channel 5 coming in strong for the people with kids who don’t want to watch the funeral.”

Channel 5 deserve a lot of respect for this. Airing an entire day's worth of kid and family friendly content to give us a break from wall to wall bleakness that most of us don't care about is a great move.

I might even break my complete disinterest in the Emoji movie and watch https://t.co/8Eod7Nfet5

— CunningSmile (@CunningSmi1e) September 16, 2022

Really don’t understand the criticism of Channel 5 for showing The Emoji Movie, Stuart Little etc during the queen’s funeral.

What are kids of families who don’t have paid TV/streaming supposed to do otherwise, sit and watch white people in suits look overly sad for 6 hours?

— Tom (@tdnightingale) September 18, 2022

To be fair it's good to see them doing something like this. Most families will have 2 TVs so adults can watch it and children watch the film. It's a shame BBC aren't doing something similar with BBC3

— Bruce (@WHUBruce) September 17, 2022

UK networks have received mild criticism for the amount of coverage dedicated to the Queen and the royals since the monarch’s death on September 8.

Broadcasting schedules have been disrupted ever since, instead dedicating hours of coverage to the procession of the Queen’s coffin from Scotland to London, followed by her lying-in-state, and then the funeral itself.

Killing Eve actress Sandra Oh and Peep Show star Sophie Winkleman were among the celebrities who attended the state funeral. You can see who else attended here.