Wave your Union Jacks in the air and get ready to join in the celebrations as Her Majesty The Queen commemorates her Diamond Jubilee.
June 2012 marks The Queen’s 60-year reign as Britain’s sovereign. As the only monarch other than Queen Victoria to serve six decades on the throne, London will be throwing a four-day Jubilee weekend (2 – 5 June) to honour the occasion.
Head down to the Thames on June 3, where around 1,000 boats – including wooden launches and steam vessels – will sail down the river in one of the largest flotillas ever assembled. Each craft will be decked out in Union Jack flags, with passenger boats carrying up to 30,000 members of public.
On the day of the River Pageant, London’s Battersea Park will be hosting a Jubilee Festival – jam-packed with crafts, stalls, funfair rides and vintage music displays. Running from 12 noon until 7pm, the festival will feature a Diamond Geezer pop-up pub and a giant cake stand of over 1,000 Diamond Jubilee themed cakes. Gather the whole family for an afternoon of dancing, design, dress-up, storytelling and outdoor cinema.
June 4 will see the lighting of the beacons; a long-standing British tradition used to signify royal weddings and coronations. At least 2,012 Jubilee beacons will be lit across the world, with the final one lit in London at 10.30pm by The Queen and broadcast live.
To really get in the spirit, take to the streets on June 5 to watch The Queen travel through London in carriage procession. Her Majesty, joined by members of the Royal family, will formally acknowledge the Jubilee with a traditional Thanksgiving Service at St. Paul’s Cathedral.
If you’d rather join in the fun without having to move too far from the sofa, why not invite your neighbours to take part in The Big Lunch on June 3? Encouraging people across the country to gather their neighbours and contribute to a shared lunch, the Big Lunch falls over the Jubilee weekend – so you can make full use of the royal celebrations and tuck into a lunch fit for a Queen!
Whatever you choose to do – have a Happy Jubilee Weekend!
