It was the People’s Day, a time to sing and dance in the Queen’s back yard
AND still the people came. Even with dark skies, Day Three of this momentous celebration wasn’t about pomp and ceremony, but it did feature rock royalty – from Rod Stewart to Diana Ross, modern stars like Mimi Webb, Sam Ryder and Mabel... and, of course, Queen, with Adam Lambert filling in for the muchmissed Freddie Mercury.
On paper this was the Platinum Party at the Palace, at least for those invited. But really it was the People’s Day, as much about the Queen thanking her subjects as the other way round, the chance for a bit of fun, come rain or shine. And, as it happened, there was both.
All the gold of the pageantry was outshone by the joyous goodwill that descended over Her Majesty’s backyard yesterday. It was evident in the way that strangers became instant friends, sharing life stories and Victoria sponge in The Mall.
It was in the spontaneous singalong – We’ll Meet Again and You’ll Never Walk Alone – that filled a corner of St James’s Park, and in the way a family of Ukrainian refugees was clapped by the crowd as they waved their yel8am. low and blue flag outside Buckingham Palace while thanking everyone, including the Queen, for ‘making us so welcome’.
Flypasts, ceremonial processions, balcony appearances... this had all been the stuff of the first two days of the Jubilee weekend. Nothing notable was due to happen in the capital yesterday, though. Not until the evening when the first acts took the stage for the Buckingham Palace concert. And so the question was: what to do in the meantime?
The Queen had urged the nation to use her Platinum Jubilee to make ‘happy memories’ with their families and friends. And so her people did just that.
Down from the shires they came, from towns and cities the length
‘They were all drawn as if by a magnetic force’
and breadth of the British Isles and beyond. They funnelled out of train and Underground stations and moved towards the Palace as if drawn by a magnetic force.
Some were ardent royalists paying solemn tribute to Her Majesty. Many more wanted to simply savour the atmosphere, just to say they had been there.
And there were those looking forward to a knees-up, while at the same time professing heartfelt admiration for the Queen. ‘She’s put in 70 years and she’s a bloomin’ marvel,’ exclaimed 68-year-old Maimie Exley, from Rochester, Kent, to cheers from her friends.
With the nation’s Covid straitjacket removed, there was no need to feel guilty about being complicit in a super-spreader event. And so, maskless, they danced and sang to any music – be it Nessun Dorma or Reach For The Stars by S Club 7 – that wafted their way.
In any case, this party was sanctioned by the Boss herself, who, everyone fervently hoped, was at Windsor with her feet up, feeling better and watching the horse racing on the telly.
Genuinely, they didn’t seem to mind her absence. An oft-expressed sentiment was that she had done enough already. On a day when republicanism seemed as popular as a sweaty street party sandwich curling on a paper plate, the rapport between the Queen and her people was never warmer.
The first to arrive did so at about In the distance, marching down The Mall from Admiralty Arch, arms aloft, hands together, they appeared as cultish figures.
As they drew nearer it transpired that they were filming while walking, with their smartphones and selfie sticks. To think that only one in 66 households owned a TV set when the Queen was crowned in 1953.
Some wonderfully barmy souls were there already, of course, having spent a cold night sleeping on The Mall just because they didn’t want to miss a second of it – even though it wasn’t exactly clear what ‘it’ might be.
There was hardy Elizabeth Ellis, 73, from Manchester, who didn’t have a tent or a sleeping bag, but who made a bed out of a mat and her coat and awoke, freezing, to grey skies and spots of rain. She didn’t seem to mind a bit.
‘I had to be here for this because I really think it will be the last commemorative event of its kind,’ she said. ‘Sure, if I lived another 500 years I wouldn’t see a Monarch reign for seven decades.
‘She’s part of our culture, isn’t she?
LEADING THE CHEERS... IT’S PRITI AND PIPPA
My very first memory is the Queen’s Coronation when I was four. There was a street party. I can clearly remember the jelly and Jubilee murals. I’ve been a fan of the Royals ever since. It is marvellous how she keeps this country together.’
Nearby, a group of ladies grumbled about the tang of dried manure, delivered courtesy of police horses, the smell sharpened by splashes of rain. They cheered when a little Royal Parks truck arrived to clear it away.
The patient crowd’s wait was, of course, eventually rewarded with an extraordinary concert featuring stars including Queen’s Brian May, who famously played on the Buckingham Palace roof 20 years ago, and last night helped the band to open the show.
Rod Stewart’s performance included Sweet Caroline, the Neil Diamond track that became the anthem for the England football team during last year’s European Championships, and Jason Donovan climbed back into his Technicolor Dreamcoat to reprise his West End role as Joseph.
Andrew Lloyd Webber joined Lin-Manuel Miranda, the star of the West End musical Hamilton, at a
piano and the crowd was thrilled by a high-octane performance by upcoming British singer-songwriter Mimi Webb.
Before it all got under way, though, a team of security workers further up The Mall wearing orange ponchos were receiving last-minute instructions from a supervisor. ‘Anything could happen out there,’ he warned. ‘This will be a once-in-alifetime experience, but we need to be on our “A” game. Let’s go, everyone, fan out...’
A group of Chilean tourists on a guided tour were agog to learn of a famous 1982 security breach at the Palace. ‘I told them of the time that guy broke in and sat on the Queen’s bed,’ said the guide afterwards as her group took selfies. ‘Chileans just love that story.’
By now it was mid-morning and the rain seemed to be falling in five-minute bursts, sending the crowd scampering for the cover of plane trees lining both sides of this famous thoroughfare.
Britain in early summer. What did they expect? Well, clearly they weren’t sure or didn’t care. By now the crowds were arriving in evergrowing numbers. There were women in mini-dresses, tea dresses and shorts and T-shirts and men dressed for Ben Nevis. Those hedging their bets wore both padded jackets and shorts.
Fashion designer Marilyn Moore, whose shop on the King’s Road in Chelsea was a favourite of the Duchess of Cambridge when she was still plain Kate Middleton, assessed all that passed before her. ‘It’s interesting seeing all the dresses,’ she offered tactfully, her husband Rob at her side.
‘We came for the atmosphere,’ she added. ‘I love being here, soaking it up, and I admire the Queen immensely.’
Her husband added: ‘It is about the people today. It’s one of those great communal events, just great that people are coming together after the horrible two years we’ve all endured. We’ve been locked up for so long and this is like the cork exploding from the bottle.’
Back at the front line, a woman recalled the time she met the Queen during a walkabout in Leicester in the 1970s.
She was looked on by her new friends with awed reverence.
‘She gave me her hand,’ said Maggie Reeve, 74. ‘The thing is, you just take her hand, you don’t squeeze it and you don’t shake it.’ The others nodded then fell silent, reflecting,
It was lunchtime now, the grey skies had cleared and the sun was shining. ‘Has anyone seen that jar of piccalilli?’ cried one of Maggie’s friends suddenly.
Piccalilli, flag-waving, unpredictable weather, singalongs. This was turning into a very British affair.
As the afternoon wore on, Maggie admitted to feeling tired. ‘But if we get to see Diana Ross on the big screen it will be worth it,’ she said.
It didn’t seem much to ask.