London Daily

Focus on the big picture.

Buckingham Palace reveals details about King’s coronation weekend

Buckingham Palace reveals details about King’s coronation weekend

The celebrations will include a star-studded concert at Windsor Castle

A balcony appearance at Buckingham Palace, a concert featuring global stars and a day of volunteering will all form part of celebrations for the King’s coronation.

The palace has revealed new details on plans for events that will take place over the coronation weekend from Saturday May 6 to Monday May 8.

The coronation of the King and Queen Consort will take place at Westminster Abbey on the Saturday morning, conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

According to the palace it will be “a solemn religious service, as well as an occasion for celebration and pageantry”.

The service will “reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry”.

Charles and Camilla will arrive at the Abbey in procession from Buckingham Palace, known as “the King’s procession”, and after the service they will return to the palace in a larger ceremonial procession, known as “the coronation procession”, joined by other members of the royal family.

At the palace, Charles and Camilla will be joined by family members on the balcony to conclude the day’s ceremonial events.

The palace has not said exactly which family members will appear in the coronation procession or on the balcony.

The UK will get an extra bank holiday for the King’s coronation

Sunday will see “global music icons and contemporary stars” descend on Windsor Castle for the coronation concert which will be broadcast live on the BBC.

Several thousand members of the public will be selected to receive a pair of free tickets through a national ballot held by the BBC.

The audience will also include volunteers from the King and Queen Consort’s charity affiliations.

The show will feature a world-class orchestra playing interpretations of musical favourites fronted by “some of the world’s biggest entertainers, alongside performers from the world of dance”, the palace said.

The performances will be supported by staging and effects located on the castle’s east lawn and will also include a selection of spoken word sequences delivered by stars of stage and screen.

The Coronation Choir, a diverse group that will be created from the nation’s keenest community choirs and amateur singers from across the UK, such as refugee choirs, NHS choirs, LGBTQ+ singing groups and deaf signing choirs, will also make an appearance.

A new documentary exploring the formation of The Coronation Choir will tell the stories of the people representing the many faces and voices of the country.

The Coronation Choir will appear alongside The Virtual Choir, made up of singers from across the Commonwealth, for a special performance on the night.

The palace said the centrepiece of the coronation concert, dubbed “lighting up the nation”, will see the country join together in celebration as landmarks across the UK are lit up using projections, lasers, drone displays and illuminations.

Meanwhile, people are invited to gather for a “coronation big lunch” on Sunday, overseen and organised by the Big Lunch team at the Eden Project.

The Queen Consort has been patron of the Big Lunch since 2013.

The palace said thousands of events are expected to take place in streets, gardens and parks in every corner of the UK.

Monday, a bank holiday, has been set aside for volunteering and is being billed as “the big help out”.

Organised by The Together Coalition and a wide range of partners such as The Scouts, the Royal Voluntary Service and faith groups from across the UK, the big help out aims to highlight the positive impact volunteering has on communities.

The palace said in tribute to the King’s public service, the big help out “will encourage people to try volunteering for themselves and join the work being undertaken to support their local areas”.

The aim of the day is to use volunteering to bring communities together and create a lasting volunteering legacy from the coronation weekend.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said tens of thousands of people are expected to visit London to experience the coronation.

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said the coronation is “a huge milestone in the history of the UK and Commonwealth”, adding that the weekend of events will bring people together to celebrate “the mixture of tradition and modernity, culture and community that makes our country great”.

Arrangements for the coronation, like those for the Queen’s funeral in September, will be diplomatically sensitive, given the likely presence of leaders from scores of different countries.

It could also pose difficulties for the royal family following the release of the Duke of Sussex’s controversial memoir, with a question mark over whether Harry and wife Meghan will be among those attending.

During an interview with Tom Bradby on ITV, Harry was asked if he will come to the coronation if he is invited, and he said: “There’s a lot that can happen between now and then.

Meanwhile, the scale of the event could be even larger than the Queen’s funeral in September, partly because overseas leaders will have more time to plan their travel.

The funeral saw leaders from most countries receive an invitation.

But representatives from Russia, Belarus, Myanmar, Syria, Venezuela and Afghanistan were not invited, while Iran, North Korea and Nicaragua were invited only at ambassadorial level.

The Government has already launched a consultation on extending pub opening hours throughout the coronation weekend.

That could mean pubs in England and Wales being allowed to stay open until 1am on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
British police appear unprepared to deal with usual suspects
Russia's Ballistic Blitz on Kyiv Sends Shockwaves Through Global Stability
Multiple Tragedies and Tensions Mark Global Events: A Closer Look
Elon Musk's AfD Endorsement Ignites Controversy from neo-Nazis who accuse the AfD of being what they themselves are
Ukraine Claims Unprecedented Russian Losses: The Truth Behind Wartime Statistics
Federal Reserve Chair Powell: "We are prohibited from owning Bitcoin and are not seeking any changes to that law."
A Democratic congresswoman with blue and black hair is having a meltdown over "President Musk."
A sizable group of unauthorized migrants is traveling through Mexico with the aim of reaching the USA before Trump assumes office.
Beatles Reunion Electrifies London: Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr Ignite O2 Arena with Surprise Performance
Starmer's Envoy Engages Trump Team as UK Seeks Strategic U.S. Partnership
Britain's Retail Rebound Falters as Black Friday Splurge Dissipates
Bank of Japan's Bold Reckoning: A Decade of Unconventional Policy Under Scrutiny
Republican Discord Threatens Government Shutdown Amid Holiday Season
French Retiree Dominique Pellico Convicted for Recruiting 72 Men to Assault Wife Over a Decade
Putin Defends War Strategy as Global Tensions Rise
Putin Claims Progress as Tensions Rise: Conflict in Ukraine Intensifies
Putin's Paradox: Claiming Strength Amidst Sanctions and Isolation
Water as a Weapon: The Contentious Struggle for Survival in Gaza
Syria's Future: A Fight for Democracy or Another Cycle of Oppression?
UK Considers Sending Troops to Ukraine: A Strategic Move or Intensifying The Proxy War?
Renewed ISIS Threat Puts Syria’s Cultural Heritage in Peril
Escalation in Moscow: High-Profile Assassination and International Tensions Intensify
North Korean Troops in Ukraine: A New Cold War Frontier?
Ukraine's Bold Move: High-Stakes Assassination of Russian General in Moscow
Dubai's Technological Leap: Brain Chips and AI Board Members by 2025
Tragedy Strikes Wisconsin School as Shooting Claims Lives of Teacher and Student
UK's Calculated Gamble: Balancing Defense Aid to Ukraine and Domestic Demands
UK Intensifies Stranglehold on Russian Oil, but Does It Dampen Putin’s Resolve?
British Voter Endorsement of Reeves's Bold Tax Strategy
Nicola Sturgeon Warns of 'Toxic' Discourse: The Perils of Polarisation in Modern Politics
Levelling Down: How the Conservatives Underspent on Regional Revitalization
Alleged Chinese Espionage: The Entangled Web Beyond Prince Andrew
Starmer Navigates Diplomatic Tightrope Amid Chinese Espionage Revelations Involving Prince Andrew
Balancing Democracy and Disorder: The Trial of a Milkshake Incident
Royal Mail Enters New Chapter Under Czech Ownership
UK Companies Slash Jobs Amid Economic Strain
Kemi Badenoch Rekindles Flat Tax Debate Amid Inheritance Tax Uproar
Rewiring Whitehall: New Cabinet Secretary's Mandate for Change
Legal Battle Revives: Lucy Letby Seeks Fresh Appeal as Expert Evidence Faces Scrutiny
Accusations Fly as UK-China Relations Spark Tension Within British Politics
The Delicate Dance of Devolution: As English Council Elections Face Delays
The Alleged Chinese Spy at the Heart of British Royal Circles: Yang Tengbo Unmasked
Prince Andrew Withdraws from Royal Christmas Amidst Chinese Espionage Scandal
EU Takes Legal Action Against UK Over Allegedly Neglected Rights of EU Citizens
Disaster Strikes: Oil Spill in the Black Sea and Cyclone Devastation in Mayotte
Oil Tanker Disaster in the Kerch Strait: A Confluence of Environmental Catastrophe and Geopolitical Tensions
Olaf Scholz’s Gamble: The Collapse of Germany’s Coalition Government and the Path to Early Elections
Keir Starmer's 'Sycophantic' Tone: Tensions Rise Over UK-China Relations
Trump Recognizes Partial Advances in Ceasefire Attempts in Ukraine Conflict
UK Navigates Complex Global and Domestic Challenges Amid Security, Environmental, and Health Concerns
×