coronation
Kate and William surprise Royal fans
William (centre l), Prince of Wales, and Kate (centre r), Princess of Wales, mingle near Windsor Castle on Sunday. photo
© Andrew Matthews/POOL PA/AP/dpa
After the meticulously planned coronation ceremony on Saturday, things are more relaxed the day after: there are street festivals all over the country – prominent guests can also be seen there.
The party goes on: thousands of street parties saw Brits celebrate the coronation of King Charles III with friends and family on Sunday. and his wife Camilla celebrated. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak invited to a table on Downing Street, decorated with red, white and blue pennants, where even the First Lady of the USA, Jill Biden, showed up. In the evening, the royal couple appeared radiant at a large concert at Windsor Castle.
Earlier, Charles and Camilla wished everyone a lot of fun at the “Coronation Big Lunch” in the afternoon. “Whether this is your first Big Lunch or it’s on the calendar every year, we send our best wishes to everyone involved,” Charles and Camilla wrote in a message on the royals’ Instagram. “We hope it will be a great event for everyone.”
Common banquet on the street
At the “Big Lunch” people meet for a banquet on the street. The street festivals have been celebrated since 2009 and are intended to promote contacts between neighbors and combat loneliness. It also collects for charity. A special recipe was even created for the coronation celebrations and published by the palace in good time: the “Coronation Quiche” with spinach, beans and tarragon.
On an official website you can search where street festivals are registered. Organized by the local communities, many across the country met at long, colorfully decorated tables for lunch and toasts – some royals also wanted to drop by. This is how Charles’ sister Princess Anne (72) and her husband, Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence (68), showed up at a celebration in Swindon. Prince Edward (59) and his wife Sophie (58) attended a celebration in Cranleigh, Surrey.
William and Kate surprise fans
Heir to the throne Prince William and his wife Kate surprised several hundred cheering royal fans near their home in Windsor on Sunday afternoon before the big coronation concert with a visit to the Long Walk in front of Windsor Castle. With a short clip on social media, William fueled speculation that he might be speaking at the grand coronation concert that evening. On the recordings showing preparations for the concert, the 41-year-old prince can be seen in front of a microphone and there is talk of a rehearsal.
20,000 people were expected to attend the concert at Windsor Castle, and most of the tickets were raffled off. The royal couple was there too. Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, Andrea Bocelli and Take That were to perform at the “Coronation Concert” organized by the BBC – rounded off by a laser show and light drones in the sky.
Instagram post Interactive map of Prince William’s Coronation Big Lunch clip