The Diamond Jubilee - 2012

[Lucien]

Just a reminder of what's what and where next weekend :

http://www.thediamondjubilee.org/central-weekend

[Robert_Hall]

Thank you Lucien.  Saved me the trouble of searching these events. I arrive on the 2nd for the festivities.
 And, there IS a carriage procession after all,  from Parlaiment to Palace. It just will not be  with the gold coach.

[Emperor of the Dominions]

Full length BBC coverage of Queen Elizabeth the Second's Jubilee Loyal Address Diamond Jubilee 2012 to Parliament, the Nation and the Commonwealth:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKwCwBVjrj0&feature=related


R.I.

[Lucien]

Less then a week from now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uqxDGhL08zE

Diamond Jubilee window shopping at Harvey Nichols...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LE-lYDxJLbk

...And at Fortnum & Mason...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=TVBbTnERjoc

[Kalafrana]

Daily Telegraph article on the Queen's favourite foods - no surpriees here.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/9301975/Royal-chef-reveals-the-Queens-favourite-meals.html

[Lucien]

More on the Jubilee wekend:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/9300510/Queens-Diamond-Jubilee-UK-travel-guide.html

And for those in London:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/9295910/Queens-Diamond-Jubilee-London-travel-guide.html


Nah,it's not a dog dropping...it's icecream...chickenflavoured...but all in the best possible taiste o'course...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/london/9295575/Queens-Diamond-Jubilee-drinking-and-dining-experiences.html

Enjoy the Diamond Jubilee weekend whereever you are!!

[Emperor of the Dominions]

BBC News: Final preparations for Thames pageant boats

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18288585

R.I.

[DNAgenie]

The whole Jubilee thing is reaching a crescendo and I bet the Queen is just longing for it all to be over.

Can you imagine what it must be like to have everyone in the country saying how wonderful you are, every minute of the day?  Nobody is that perfect, not even the Queen.  I think she's been saying to herself "If only they knew!" There must have been times when she's made mistakes of one kind or another, but you won't hear about them until after the Jubilee celebrations are over, if then.

I admire the Queen, but I'm beginning to feel sickened by the whole deal. The Jubulee was OK in Queen Victoria's day - there was just a public procession and a thanksgiving service.  But these days, the media being what it is, it's gone on far too long, we're not there yet, and the commentators keep piling on the superlatives. 

Yuk.  It's too much.

[darius]

The whole Jubilee thing is reaching a crescendo and I bet the Queen is just longing for it all to be over.

Can you imagine what it must be like to have everyone in the country saying how wonderful you are, every minute of the day?  Nobody is that perfect, not even the Queen.  I think she's been saying to herself "If only they knew!" There must have been times when she's made mistakes of one kind or another, but you won't hear about them until after the Jubilee celebrations are over, if then.

I admire the Queen, but I'm beginning to feel sickened by the whole deal. The Jubulee was OK in Queen Victoria's day - there was just a public procession and a thanksgiving service.  But these days, the media being what it is, it's gone on far too long, we're not there yet, and the commentators keep piling on the superlatives. 

Yuk.  It's too much.

I totally DISAGREE with your sentiments.  Nobody is saying The Queen is perfect and of course she may have made some minor slips in the course of her 60 YEARS on the throne, but what is that in such a huge timespan of public service. 

The Jubilee as its name would suggest is a celebration.  We don´t often have the opportunity to celebrate as a nation and a Diamond Jubilee is something which is rarely seen.  For the first time HM is perhaps getting the credit she´s due from the media.  Who was the last leader with 60 years of public service?  Churchill perhaps.

I would urge you to join in the spirit of national celebration and commemorate this remarkable achievement.

[Kalafrana]

I think you may be right that the Queen herself is feeling a bit embarrassed at all the admiration. Rather like George V, who wrote in his diary at the time of his Silver Jubilee, 'I really think people are beginning to like me for myself', or something very similar.

Only three other European monarchs have reigned long enough for a Diamond Jubilee (Queen Victoria, Louis XIV and Franz Josef), so they are extremely rare, and in any case the Queen deserves to be admired for her old-fashioned virtues, such as her sense of duty and her utter dependability.

I agree with Darius that the media often does not give the Queen the credit she deserves.

God Save The Queen!!

For many more years.

Ann

[Suzanne]

Comparing the Canadian role in Queen Victoria's and Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilees

http://www.royalhistorian.com/canada-and-queen-victorias-diamond-jubilee/

[Lucien]

A Jubilee Tribute by HRH The Prince of Wales:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18290805

Changing faces of HM The Queen 1952 2012:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18208434

[Grace]

In a world where singers, actors and sporting "stars" are now treated as if they're the most important people on the planet, why shouldn't Her Majesty lap up a few days of adulation anyway - she's plodded on for decades, often not terribly appreciated for her efforts at the head of a family many now resent as a symbol of bygone wealth and privilege.  This is a very rare occasion of celebration (given the last Diamond Jubilee was in 1897) all can participate in if they choose to and at the same time ignore if they choose to.  If we regard it as too much to spend a few short days to thank Elizabeth II for a lifetime of devoted service to Britain and the Commonwealth then I think it would be pretty miserable state of affairs.

[Emperor of the Dominions]

BBC 1: The Queen's Diamond Jubilee
 - A Jubilee Tribute to The Queen by the Prince of Wales:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01jhxjy/The_Queens_Diamond_Jubilee_A_Jubilee_Tribute_to_The_Queen_by_the_Prince_of_Wales/

R.I.

[DNAgenie]

I'm not criticising the Diamond Jubilee - I think the idea is great, and well-deserved, and QEII has done a marvellous job over the years. What I object too is the increasingly maudlin tone of the commentators.

I was in England for the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977, and I had strict instructions from my sister-in-law to bring back a Corgi Toastrack as a souvenir of the occasion. Apparently the Corgi Toastracks did go on sale for a few days, but when the Palace heard about it they decided that was just too kitsch, so the toastracks were withdrawn from sale.

This time round I think the Queen might prefer Corgi Toastracks to some of the things being said about her.