‘We look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm’
The Queen launches her Platinum Jubilee celebrations with message of hope to the nation
THE Queen has begun her Platinum Jubilee celebrations with a message to the nation that it can look to the future with “confidence and enthusiasm”.
As she expressed gratitude to the UK and Commonwealth, Her Majesty said her record-breaking milestone was a chance to reflect on what has been achieved during her 70-year reign, and for new “happy memories” to be created by all.
As the four-day bank holiday begins, the monarch will today lead the Royal family and nation in the celebrations.
Having paced herself to overcome mobility problems that have left her in discomfort, she hopes to take a full part in the first day’s events, from Trooping the Colour on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to a hi-tech beacon-lighting ceremony from Windsor Castle.
The Royal family will assemble in full, with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex returning to Britain and set to watch the parade with other non-working royals. Crowds were already lining The Mall yesterday in anticipation.
Meanwhile, a record number of women have been recognised for their service in the Queen’s birthday honours. The Queen has also given her staff a 5 per cent pay rise to help them through the cost of living crisis.
A new photograph issued last night shows the Queen wearing a dove blue coat with shiny pearl and diamante scalloped beading.
The image, more relaxed than the previous jubilee photographs, in which the monarch was dressed in full regalia complete with crown or tiara and sash, captures the Queen looking comfortable and content, with her hands folded on her lap.
In a personal message released last night, the Queen said: “Thank you to everyone who has been involved in convening communities, families, neighbours and friends to mark my Platinum Jubilee, in the United Kingdom and across the Commonwealth.
“I know that many happy memories will be created at these festive occasions. I continue to be inspired by the goodwill shown to me, and hope that the coming days will provide an opportunity to reflect on all that has been achieved during the last 70 years, as we look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm.”
An estimated billion people around the world are expected to watch the celebrations, with hundreds of thousands set to join street parties and watch a pageant.
Today, the Royal family will be out in force for Trooping the Colour, the Queen’s annual birthday parade. However, the monarch, at the age of 96, will take a modified role at Buckingham Palace for her comfort. The Prince of Wales will stand in for her during the full military spectacle on Horse Guards Parade, inspecting the troops accompanied by the Duke of Cambridge and the Princess Royal on horseback. The Queen will take a royal salute from the balcony of Buckingham Palace as the Household Division comes to her. The Duke of York will not be present.
The Queen’s message is intended as a simple one of celebration, wishing the public a happy bank holiday.
It complements her written message sent for Accession Day on Feb 6, the moment she officially passed 70 years on the throne. Then, she renewed her pledge first made in 1947, “that my life will always be devoted to your service”.
Since then, she has made significant adjustments to continue her working life, handing duties over to the Prince of Wales and Duke of Cambridge.
Her Platinum Jubilee photograph was taken by Ranald Mackechnie, who has previously taken two portraits of the Queen that also included her heirs, the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge and Prince George.
The new image was taken in the Victoria Vestibule at Windsor Castle last week. It shows the castle’s Round Tower in the background, with a statue of Charles II visible, but out of focus.
Tonight, following Trooping the Colour, the Queen will return to Windsor for a ceremony in which she will symbolically light the principal jubilee beacon as part of a dual ceremony with her grandson, the Duke of Cambridge.
She will touch a “Commonwealth of Nations Globe”, on a blue and gold cushion, which will trigger a cascade of lights to London, ending at Buckingham Palace.
There, the Duke will watch as the “Tree of Trees”, a sculpture of 350 native trees, lights up as the climax of a 3,000-strong sequence of beacons around the Commonwealth.