All-star cast join spectacular show
TOM Cruise, Helen Mirren and Alan Titchmarsh head an all-star cast tonight for the unofficial start of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations on ITV.
The channel will be presenting a spectacular two-hour display from the Royalwindsor Horse Show.
And the pageant has “something for everybody” according to co-presenter Phillip Schofield who will take charge of proceedings with Julie Etchingham.
There are musical performances from Keala Settle, Gregory Porter and Katherine Jenkins, along with a journey through history as told by Dame Helen and Tom Cruise.
Comedian Omid Djalili, actor Damian Lewis and Bridgerton’s Adjoa Andoh complete the stellar line-up.
Titchmarsh said: “I’m delighted to be taking part in the Platinum Jubilee Pageant at Windsor, not least because I am a regular attender at the Royal Windsor Horse Show and have also been involved in presenting the
pageant at
The Queen’s Diamond
Jubilee and Her Majesty’s 90th Birthday Celebration. I’m honoured to have been asked back.”
The famous gardener will oversee the display involving the Queen’s horses and carriages.
“The Royal Mews has always been a place close to my heart,” he said. “I used to ride quite a lot and have even ridden with the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery in their famous gun-carriage exercise. Scary but wonderfully thrilling. I know how much skill it takes to achieve such astonishing horsemanship.”
On sharing the platform with Tom Cruise, he said: “Tom Cruise and I are not a natural
pairing, but I’m all for breaking the mould.
“I know Adjoa Andoh and some of the other presenters and I suspect we are all just grateful to have been asked to participate. It will be the most spectacular evening and I suspect we’ll all just be anxious to get it right.”
He agreed the casting with Cruise had “raised a few eyebrows”.
But he added: “It has also raised the profile of the event.
At least I was described as a ‘Gardening A-lister’, so that will do me, though as well as being a man of the earth I have also been a television presenter and talk show host for more than 30 years now.
“I just want to get out there and do a good job and I am sure Tom Cruise feels the same.”
Julie Etchingham said the night is a “huge technical feat”.
“We’ll have a rooftop position overlooking the arena for all the performances, from where our live broadcast will
come. Our team are working alongside the vast crew in charge of the actual show inside the arena – 500 horses, 1,300 performers, children’s choirs, 75-piece orchestra, stars of stage and screen.
“The scale of it is incredible. But the atmosphere should be wonderful, especially as it’s the first big event to kick off the jubilee celebrations.”
Asked what the monarchy meant to her, she said: “It’s hard to describe but I just think Her Majesty the Queen is the epitome of service. To have dedicated her whole life to this role from such a young age – with all the enormous change the country has been through; through all the personal highs and lows she’s encountered – and to have done so with such grace, determination and discretion, is inspiring. She has been a constant, reassuring presence in our national life.”
Alan Titchmarsh echoed the sentiments: “The British monarchy has never been better represented than it has been by Queen Elizabeth II.
“I am lucky enough to have met and talked to every member of the Royal Family over the years. Her Majesty The Queen, HRH the Prince of Wales and HRH The Princess Royal are great examples of dedication, loyalty and devotion to duty in this country.
“We can all learn from their tenacity, often in the face of criticism, and admire their achievements, which are seldom given the recognition they deserve. Their presence has a remarkable effect on ordinary folk, and we all need a bit of ‘special’ in our lives.” And what would the Queen enjoy most about tonight?
“Undoubtedly it is the horses that will lift Her Majesty’s spirits. But I hope she will also feel touched by the presence of so many people, both on-stage and in the audience, who are there not only to enjoy the spectacle but to say thank you for a job well done, and to wish her well for the future. Goodness, she’s earned our respect.”
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebration, ITV and ITV Hub, tonight from 8pm.
A Six-minute flypast of more than 70 aircraft will complete the Queen’s birthday parade as part of Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Dozens of aircraft, including helicopters, from the Royal Navy, the Army and Royal Air Force will soar over Buckingham Palace onthursday June 2, the Ministry of Defence said.
The Queen is expected to watch the spectacular, which will follow thetroopingthe Colour, from the palace balcony with working members of the Royal Family.
The flypast will take six minutes to fly over the crowds and is expected to include more than three times the number of aircraft which took part in the Queen’s last birthday event in central London in 2019.
It will include highlights from the history of the
RAF, including aircraft from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.