From Stonehenge to the heart of London – everything is ready for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations

Gorgeous floral arrangements, Union Jack flags flying everywhere, dress rehearsal of paradesclosed roads to organize large neighborhood partiesshops full of souvenirs with the face of Elizabeth II. All of London is in turmoil in anticipation of the four-day national holiday – from 2 to 5 June – in which the seventy years on the throne of ninety-six year old sovereign. The capital of the United Kingdom has certainly not been found unprepared for the historic milestone, and has been dressed up for days already (see gallery below) for the Platinum Jubilee.

The highlight of the preparations took place a few days ago with the dress rehearsals of the Trooping The Color, the traditional parade that celebrates the queen’s official birthday in June. In front of Buckingham Palace the regiments of the Commonwealth and British Army in full uniform. For many onlookers it was the only opportunity to attend the ceremony: the tickets (costing about 30 pounds) have long since sold out also because the event, which this year will take place on 2 June from 10 to 13, has not been held for two years due to the pandemic. For those who have not managed to win them, it always remains the live broadcast of the BBC which does not even oblige to respect the rigid dress code required to participate. Trooping The Color has always been one of the most anticipated events of the year: it is one of the rare occasions in which subjects can see the more or less complete royal family (this year there will be neither Harry And Meghan nor the prince Andrew) who witnesses the Royal Air Force aerobatic squadron, the Red Arrows, from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

But preparations are in full swing in every single street, in every single square. The Union Jacks are already waving on Regent Street and other important streets in central London, the stage of the great musical party to be held on the evening of Saturday 4 June – Party at the Palace the name – in schools, children prepare greeting cards to send to Her Majesty and the final details of the Big Jubilee Lunch, the public lunches scheduled for June 5th. The British will gather to eat and toast all together in the streets adjacent to their homes, at long tables enlivened by music and entertainment. For the occasion, several streets in neighborhoods and municipalities across the UK will be closed. The whole of the United Kingdom is preparing for the beyond 12 thousand street parties scheduled from 2 to 5 June. In 2012, on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee, there were “only” 9,500.

Meanwhile, the shops have filled up with official (and non-official) merchandising, from dog biscuits to prosecco with the royal coat of arms, and hotels and restaurants are selling out despite the monstrous prices. The costs of special packages are overwhelming for those offering tea with pastries, gala dinners and a view of the large official events organized by Buckingham Palace. Around 15,000 pounds per person at the Corinthia, the Ritz and the Café de Paris.

Elizabeth, 96, 70 of whom spent on the throne, has seen radical transformations in the UK as well as in the Commonwealth yet all polls indicate that, even if republican sentiment has grown in the country and in the former empire, too, admiration and respect for the sovereign have not been affected by time. No other crowned head in the UK has ever reached such an important milestone. It is logical that the British want to celebrate it properly. It is logical that the preparations, a few days before the great event, become more and more intense (see gallery under).

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