The four days of celebrations for Queen Elizabeth’s 70th year on the throne in Britain conclude Sunday with a pageant through central London and tens of thousands of people expected to participate in street parties across the country.
The parade will feature Ed Sheeran, singer and more than 100 “national treasures”, ranging from Gary Lineker, a former soccer player, to Basil Brush, a children’s TV puppet.
The procession will follow the same route that the 96-year old took in 1953 on her coronation day. It aims to recall the different decades of her record-breaking reign.
A series of “Big Jubilee Lunches,” which will be held in Britain, will feature an estimated 16,000 street parties and 600 other events around the world, including Brazil, New Zealand and South Africa.
After Prince Charles, her son and heir paid a touching tribute to his mother on Saturday night at a glittering concert outside Buckingham Palace, the final day of celebrations will be concluded.
“You promised to serve you your entire life. You continue to deliver. Charles stated this in his message to Queen Elizabeth, who was visiting Windsor Castle outside London.
“You’ve met us, talked to us. Charles said, “You have met us and talked with us. You are there for us for these 70 years.” Charles also referred to the queen as “mummy”, referring to her at the event that began with a comic sketch of the 96-year-old monarch enjoying tea with Paddington Bear.
JUBILEE EVENTS
Saturday’s concert was one of many Jubilee events Elizabeth missed due to “episodic movement problems”, which recently led her to cancel engagements.
Elizabeth, 25, ascended to the throne in 1952 after George VI died. She was the inheritor of dominion over Britain, which was still recovering from World War Two. Winston Churchill was the prime minister.
There have been 14 UK prime ministers and 14 U.S. presidents in her reign. The Berlin Wall fell, Britain joined and left Europe, and her nation’s once-great empire was replaced by a Commonwealth made up of 54 countries.
Elizabeth was instrumental in the creation of the latter, and many consider it her greatest accomplishment.
Charles said, “You continue making history,” and added that Prince Philip, his father, died last year at the age of 99, after seven decades with the queen.
Four days of celebrations were held to commemorate the monarch’s seventy-year reign. They began Thursday with a military parade, and a Royal Air Force flypast and ended Friday with a National Service of Thanksgiving.
According to opinion polls, a majority of Britons believe that the monarchy should be retained. A recent Ipsos poll found that nine out of ten respondents agreed with her.
