In a matter of days Charles III will make his first visit to Wales as King, travelling to Cardiff for a service to remember Elizabeth II as well as visiting the Senedd and Cardiff Castle. Workers have been out in force in the Llandaff area of the city since last week preparing the area for the day.
Llandaff Cathedral will be the King and Queen Consort's first port of call on their visit to attend a remembrance service. The day after the Queen's death a notice was put outside the cathedral announcing that it had closed until further notice in order to prepare for the service. Leave your tribute to the Queen here
Prayers and a time for reflection will be held in the cathedral in the service on Friday, September 16, for the King and Queen Consort alongside some of Wales' most senior clergy. The Royal couple will then visit the Senedd to receive a motion of condolence. Preparations are already being made for the visit with council workers out in force in the Llandaff area re-surfacing roads, weeding, and cleaning.
See some of the preparations:
Michelle Palmer and Katy Penny of flower and gift shop Garlands, in Llandaff High Street, have been watching the work take place with council workers taking down old bunting outside the shop that was put up for the Queen's Jubilee. Like many businesses in the street Michelle said on Monday they hadn’t been informed about the plans for Friday as of yet.
Despite not being scheduled to work on the day of the visit, however, she says she will still come into the shop. “It’s prompted me to want to come into work because it’s a spectacle. It’s something completely different – I just want to see it. I’m just coming to watch,” she said.
“We don’t always get a lot of stuff in Cardiff. It’s obviously very rare for someone from the Royal Family to show up,” Katy added. With work being done across the high street and the Cathedral Green Michelle said the visit will affect businesses this week, adding that the street had become busier at the weekend with people coming to visit the cathedral following the announcement of the service. “We’re wondering if people will come to buy the flowers,” she said. “Our business will be affected on Friday. A lot of people will be coming in [to the area] so it will be a win-win situation with that. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”
Kim Geary co-owns K2 in the high street with her husband Kevin. She said she had seen workers out preparing the streets since the news of a visit to Llandaff Cathedral was announced last week with about 30 workers out weeding the area, she said. “I know they’ve got to make it look nice but it’s quite comical. I just think it’s going to be busy. I think it’s good to be put on the map.”
This won’t be the first time Kim has witnessed a member of the Royal family passing the café having been open for business for 25 years. “We’ve seen Princess Anne, Prince Charles – we’ve seen the lot of them,” she said. “We just watch them going up [the street] and then I get back to work.”
Nicola Padmore, manager of the Butchers Arms, says she’s a fan of the Royal family and is looking forward to Friday’s event. While the pub usually opens at 4pm Nicola said they plan to open all day on Friday. “I’ve watched it every day,” she said, referring to the coverage of the Queen’s death. “It’s very sad for [King Charles]. I just wish he didn’t have to do all this after his mum has died.”
She continued: “It’s really nice for him to come here. He’s been here before, obviously, as the Prince of Wales. It will be lovely.” While the new King has visited the area previously Nicola said she has only seen him passing in a car. “I’m hoping that [on Friday] they will get out and see the crowds but I don’t know.”
Geoff Barton-Greenwood, vice-president of the Llandaff Society, said “service to the Crown has been a major factor of [his] life”, having served as a flight lieutenant in the RAF for the City of Llandaff. “The Llandaff Society will do everything it can to facilitate the prestigious visit of the new King,” Geoff said.
“He’s been here before as the Prince of Wales and the last time the Queen was here was for the Golden Jubilee. I think [the visit] is very, very significant and we’re so delighted it’s happening here in Llandaff which is a 2,000-year-old Christian settlement that, until 1922, was independent of Cardiff.”
Cathedral Green resident Jeanette Ryder has lived there for 42 years. She said: “I’m very happy about the visit. There’s an awful lot of work going on – it’s good to see things being done. It will be good to have the potholes done.” The 78-year-old added: “It’s quite nice to have him coming to the village. I guess they feel the whole country needs to be supported and as ex-Prince of Wales he might want Cardiff to be involved.”
Jeanette was one resident who was told on Monday morning that she would need to move her car for work to take place in preparation for the visit. A letter dated September 12 was posted through to residents announcing "several road closures" taking place in the lead-up to the service.
Josephine Hirst is also a Cathedral Green resident and has been since 1972. Speaking of the King’s visit to the cathedral, she said: “It’s a rite of passage and so it should be. I’m delighted it’s in Llandaff – I shall be watching.” Josephine has formerly visited Highgrove House, the former family residence of Charles III, with the South Wales Arts Society. She said she thinks the new King has “good ideas on farming methods”.
“I wish the King was coming to visit every week and then lots of other problems could be sorted,” she said, adding: “I think the Queen was remarkable. In a way, for somebody of 25 to take on what she did and do it for 70 years, it’s no wonder the world is in awe of her. She was always there – it was a constant. I’m sure Charles will be just as good in a different way.”
A proclamation took place on Sunday, September 11, at Cardiff Castle, which saw King Charles formally announced in Wales as the new monarch. Reports also suggest that the new Prince of Wales' investiture will be a more "low-key ceremony" in comparison to his father's in 1969. Prince William's investiture is scheduled to happen after the King's coronation and is likely to be next year. Reports suggest it will take place at Llandaff Cathedral although Cardiff council could not confirm anything at this stage. To get more Cardiff stories straight to your inbox subscribe to our daily newsletter here.
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