The extended bank holiday inspired revellers to line The Mall in celebration of the Queen’s 70-year reign.
05 June 2022
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations have seen antics on the balcony, flag-waving Windsors and an unexpected royal double act with a famous bear.
Here are some of the highlights from the four days of festivities.
The Jubilee Queen
After 70 years on the throne, the Queen remains the leading lady with the crowds roaring and erupting into three cheers as she stepped onto the Palace balcony, not once but twice, on the first day.
But the brief appearances left the 96-year-old tired.
She rallied to attend a special beacon lighting at Windsor Castle in the evening.
But the Palace announced she would be missing the church service on the Friday.
Scenes on The Mall
The Great British public took to the celebrations with gusto, with hundreds of thousands of flag-waving royal fans packing onto The Mall in central London.
Spring sunshine set the mood for jubilant scenes on Thursday as the crowds gathered in honour of the monarch after the Trooping the Colour spectacle on Thursday.
Louis steals the show
The youngest Cambridge sibling provided the entertainment and captured hearts from the Palace balcony.
Four-year-old Louis let out a howl and covered his ears during the Jubilee flypast, with his “Gan Gan” the Queen sweetly interacting with her great-grandson, leaning down to chat to him and point out the planes.
Beacons
A chain of more than 3,500 beacons stretching across the UK and around the Commonwealth were set ablaze late on the first evening marking the Jubilee in the time-honoured way.
The principal beacon was a 21-metre living Tree Of Trees sculpture towering above Buckingham Palace, symbolically illuminated by the Queen from Windsor while the Duke of Cambridge watched in London.
The return of Harry and Meghan
It had been a while but the return of the Sussexes for the first time at an official public royal occasion since Megxit drew much media attention.
All eyes were on Harry and Meghan at the service of thanksgiving in St Paul Cathedral on Friday.
But the reunion of Harry and the Duke of Cambridge proved elusive with the Sussexes sat in the second row, far across the aisle from the duke’s father, brother and sister in law Kate.
Penguin feeding and leading the band
Members of the royal family toured the UK, with the Princess Royal feeding penguins in Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland and the Earl of Wessex pulling a pint of Guinness during a trip to Bangor in Northern Ireland.
Prince George and Princess Charlotte made a surprise appearance at Cardiff Castle on their first official visit to Wales
The excited princess conducted the orchestra in a rendition of We Don’t Talk About Bruno from the Disney film Encanto, while George played with the sound and lighting decks, as they met performers preparing for a Jubilee concert at the castle.
The Queen and Paddington bear
The monarch delighted the nation when she starred alongside Paddington in a surprise comedy sketch and showed the bear from deepest darkest Peru how she stored marmalade sandwiches in her famous black Launer handbag.
Offering a fresh insight into the Queen’s sense of humour and her wry wit, the secretly-filmed skit, played at the start of the BBC’s Platinum Party at the Palace on Saturday night, showed the pair enjoying a chaotic afternoon tea.
Royal sing-song
The Cambridges enjoyed the party atmosphere as The Firm sang along with the tunes at the Jubilee concert.
Prince George belted out Sweet Caroline, while the Duke of Cambridge knew the words to Jason Donovan’s rendition of Any Dream Will Do.
Charles’ moving tribute
“You laugh and cry with us and, most importantly, you have been there for us,” Charles told Queen in a moving thank you toast at the televised concert.
Calling the monarch mummy, he took to the stage to praise the Queen for her “lifetime of selfless service”.
He rallied the crowd into cheering the absent monarch who was 20 miles away at Windsor, saying if they were “loud enough she might, might just hear us”.
Stars of the show
Acts including Queen + Adam Lambert, Alicia Keys, and Eurovision’s Sam Ryder triumphed at the star-studded show.
Soul legend Diana Ross closed the open-air set, with her first live performance in the UK in 15 years.
Corgi drones
Drones flying over the Palace created a giant corgi in the sky and spelled out the message “Thank you Ma’am” in lights, thrilling concert goers.
Big Jubilee lunches
Millions gathered with their friends, families and neighbours for traditional Jubilee street parties on Sunday for the final day of the celebrations
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall mingled with guests at the flagship Big Jubilee Lunch in The Oval cricket ground.
Charles said he hoped “bickering” does not return after a feeling of “togetherness” across the nation over weekend.
