Philip Collins
(Picture: Daniel Hambury)The British are brilliantly creative at inventing traditions. When the Prince of Wales was invested in 1969, the service was made up more or less on the spot but made to sound as if it were as old as time itself. This weekend, over a four-day bank holiday weekend, a series of commemorative events will unfold to mark a national first — the platinum jubilee, 70 years on the throne, of a serving monarch.
There will be a Trooping the Colour on Thursday, which members of the royal family will join on horseback, and a platinum jubilee pageant along with lots of smaller events across the nation. Sneaking in a bit of fun among the otherwise planned spontaneity, the Princess Royal will go to the Cazoo Derby at Epsom, a celebration which certainly hasn’t featured in any previous jubilees.
