Sunday 3 June 2012

Jubilation on the River

Before venturing down to the river house church folk are beginning to arrive for breakfast in the rain. Pancakes and Strawberries with coffee or tea. Nothing stops the British when they put their mind to it.
We concluded with a great rendition of 'God Save our Gracious Queen' on the top of our voices.
Too wet to hang about so retreated indoors to pray for our Queen and country.
Long May She Reign!




Well I did not really go down to the river
I took these photos from the TV in the comfort of my own sitting room hence the grainy effect

The last flotilla of this kind (and not on such a grand scale) took place in 1662 



Her Majesty arrives of her Jubilee barge - Spirit of Chartwell
Neither she nor her 90 year old Prince Philip sat down once during the 4 hour pageant
The gentleman on the left in grey was responsible for planning the whole event


People often think that the Queen looks glum, but she is not, she concentrates very hard as she likes to remember everything



Watching the historic Gloriana sail past




The reason I did not go down to the river (although my son did)
The crowds were estimated to be in their millions not thousands


The procession began with man powered boats of every kind




Prince Philip, Camilla Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Kate the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry and Prince William



Mouri contingent


I would love to know her thoughts


Boris Johnson the Mayor of London on the left and the City of London Mayor on the right


Princess Ann the Princess Royal centre


The Queen chats with Camilla


Charles, William, Harry and Philip


The 12 bells cast especially for the Jubilee which will be hung in one of the churches along the river
They headed up the procession and rang out throughout with churches along the route replying with their own bells




Gardens planted on both ends of the boat


The younger generation


The London Eye was especially booked for the duration including afternoon tea on board I understand



Every possible view point was used


Prince Andrew and his daughter Princess Eugenie


The Royal Barge passing the Houses of Parliament


and the Royal Festival Hall
where we see Sea Scouts communicating with the Royal Barge in Semaphore (top)


Here the Queen is amused to see a scene from 'War Horse' enacted on the balcony of The Royal National Theatre (a favourite film of hers apparently)

said horse


Tower Bridge in sight and it is raining heavily


The bells still ringing out


a Jubilee party in the rain
abandoned as the Queen's boat gets nearer
The bottom of the new Shard building upper left which disappeared into the clouds


The bridge was opened for the Queen to pass through - not a necessity but a gesture
my camera battery had run out by the time it opened so no picture


Flags of the Commonwealth


One of the music boats
(battery has run out!)

The rain became so torrential that the Grand Finale had to be cut short and the arial fly past cancelled due to low cloud cover and poor visibility





26 comments:

Patsy said...

Thanks I enjoyed that very much.

Come Away With Me said...

That was certainly a grand procession...too bad about the rain. I really enjoyed your photos taken off the TV and can imagine how exciting it must have been for those who braved the crowds to see it in person. But I think you saw it much better from the comfort of your own home. And therefore, so did we!

Julie Whitmore Pottery said...

Barbara, Thanks so much for all the fantastic pictures, just the ones I wanted to see and could not. Did watch live a bit, the coverage spotty here and there is so much interest I can't understand why. But feel good about seeing some of it live.
Such a spectacular and moving event.
xx
julie

Annie Jeffries said...

How exciting!! I love the picture of the Queen leaning forward and waving her greeting. I love her smile in that moment.

DeniseinVA said...

That was a great post. Thank you so much!

Willow said...

Thanks! I so enjoyed 'sharing' the occasion with you!

Mary Ann said...

Oh, gosh, thank you for these wonderful pictures! They gave me the shivers! How wonderful for your country to have such an admirable leader.

Needled Mom said...

A celebration fit for a queen!!!! It was stunning.

Gracie Saylor said...

Thanks so much for making the effort to put this post together, Barbara! We chose to not have a cable connection for TV and so miss out on some of the exciting news like this.
Someone sent me a video link to a speech the Queen made at Christmas or New Years, and I so respected her views and her loving encouragement not only for her nation, but for the world.
How amazing it is that God allows us to partner with Him as we pray for those in authority.
Blessings to you and yours,
Gracie

Vee said...

So impressed with the pictures taken from your tv. They're excellent really. Somehow rain does not seem fitting for such a grand day though I've heard commentary that the Queen was crowned on such a day. Course it was a February day and not a June one. It'll be interesting what your son has to say about it all.

CherryPie said...

It was a fantastic celebration. Like you I took some photographs of the BBC coverage too. I think our Queen loved every minute of it :-)

Cheri said...

Those were great pictures no matter where you were. thanks for sharing, I loved them. We are obsessed with Kate here and she looked beautiful. Great post Barbara.

Balisha said...

Oh, Barbara...what a celebration! We've watched a couple of specials on TV here in the states, but nothing compared to hearing about it from one who lives there. Thankyou for the pictures...
Balisha

nikkipolani said...

In my haste to see the photos, I missed the part where you said you were using photos from television! Roomie and I were wondering where on earth you were situated to get such fantastic shots -- not realizing you were in your comfy home ;-) Thank you for the guided tour of the events.

elizabeth said...

Loved your super photos!
Saw most of it on TV but it was Gretchen's christening day so spent the afternoon in Long Island.
I thought the Queen looked splendid!

Anonymous said...

We were glued to the television all afternoon. It was a wonderful event.

Terri said...

Thanks for sharing the Event, Barbara. I really loved seeing all your pictures. (Loved the hats, and the bells. It was great to see the Queen smile!)
Hugs!

Betty said...

Barbara,
I enjoyed all the pictures and narrative of the River Thames
boat flotilla....

I've watched the coverage here in the states on BBC America and other networks. Queen Elizabeth certainly favors her father King George VI, doesn't she? Especially in her younger years.

Blessings,
Betty @ Country Charm

Nancy B said...

Somehow, I managed to miss this on TV. I'm so happy to have found your blog via a comment on Susan Branch's blog. Thank you so much for posting this. The pictures are fantastic and quite clear.

Nancy from California, USA

Bev said...

In spite of the rain, what a lovely, spectacular day!

Lorrie said...

Wonderful photos, Barbara, even if taken from the BBC. I watched a few snippets on television here, but not for a long time. Our daughter and her husband sent a short note saying that they had seen the Queen, and Kate! And that they were soaked to the skin. I'm looking forward to hearing more details from her in person.

Cathy said...

I love all things British! I'm really enjoying exploring your Blog.

Linda said...

That looked so great. How fun being in the boat parade would have been.

Adrienne said...

I have enjoyed watching all the celebrations. TV coverage on this side of the pond has been great! I've been intrigued by the Queen since I was a very young girl lying on my tummy on the living room carpet of my great-grandmother's home as we all quietly watched the coronation!
~Adrienne~

Bunny Jean said...

Hi Barbara!

Thank you for sharing all your wonderful pictures with us. I can't believe they were taken off your tv!

I know the Queen is very stoic but when Prince Charles was speaking (at the end of the outdoor concert) about Prince Philip being in hospital and missing the celebration... I think she was almost emotional. I am sure she must have been worried sick about his being ill.

xoxo Bunny Jean

Lori Zehr said...

Such splendor! I was fascinated!