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Wales Online
Wales Online
Entertainment
Erin Santillo

Queen's Platinum Jubilee schedule: What to expect over the four-day celebrations

The UK's first-ever Platinum Jubilee will be marked with four days of celebrations over the bank holiday weekend, June 2-5. Events will take place across the four nations, including the Cardiff Castle Jubilee Concert, hosted by Aled Jones and Shan Cothi.

London will be the epicentre of a stream of traditional pageantry, all of which will be broadcast live on BBC One. The Queen is expected to make a number of appearances as she celebrates 70 years on the throne.

Here is a rundown of the official events that the royal family will attend. An interactive map of all the festivities happening in your area can be found on the UK government's Platinum Jubilee website.

Read more: Why the Queen owns every dolphin in British waters and other strange facts about our monarch

Thursday, June 2

The Queen is expected to mark her official birthday by appearing on the balcony for the traditional RAF fly-past (Getty Images)

10:00 – Trooping the Colour

More than 1,400 soldiers, 200 horses and 400 musicians will parade down The Mall to Horse Guards Parade. Members of the royal family will leave Buckingham Palace on horseback and in carriages to join the display of pageantry from 10:30.

Once the royal procession has returned to the palace, the Queen is expected to mark her official birthday by appearing on the balcony for the traditional RAF fly-past at 13:00. Only working royals will be alongside the monarch, meaning Prince Harry, Meghan and Prince Andrew will not make an appearance.

21:00 – Lighting of the Beacons

Members of the royal family will watch the lighting of the principal beacon, a 21-metre tall sculpture outside Buckingham Palace. More than 3,000 beacons will then be lit across the UK and Commonwealth.

Friday, June 3

St Paul's Cathedral plays host to a service of thanksgiving (PA)

11:00 – Service of Thanksgiving

St Paul's Cathedral plays host to a service of thanksgiving. The royal family will begin to arrive at 11:00 with proceedings set to get underway at 11:30.

It will mark the first time the newly restored Great Paul bell is rung for a royal occasion. It fell silent in the 1970s due to a broken mechanism before being fixed in 2021.

Saturday, June 4

Princess Anne will represent the royal family at the Epsom Derby (Getty Images)

17:30 – Epsom Derby

Princess Anne will represent the royal family at the Epsom Derby in Surrey. The Queen, an avid racegoer, is no longer planning to attend.

A guard of honour made of up to 40 of the monarch’s past and present jockeys is due to line the course. None of her three horses will be participating in the prestigious flat race.

20:00 – Party at the Palace

Kirsty Young and Roman Kemp will host an open-air show in front of Buckingham Palace. Among the stars performing their greatest hits are Diana Ross, Queen + Adam Lambert, George Ezra, Duran Duran, Nile Rodgers, Craig David, Hans Zimmer, Alicia Keys and UK Eurovision entry Sam Ryder.

Some 22,000 people will attend the event, including 10,000 allocated in a public ballot and 5,000 tickets for key workers. It is expected to end at around 22:30.

Sunday, June 5

A 3km-long carnival procession with travel from Horse Guards Parade to Buckingham Palace (Getty Images)

12:00 – Big Jubilee Lunch

More than 60,000 people have registered to host Jubilee lunches of all sizes, from back garden barbecues to street-closing feasts. Prince Charles and Camilla will join a flagship lunch at The Oval cricket ground while Prince Edward and Sophie will be at Windsor's Long Walk.

14:30 – Jubilee Pageant

A 3km-long carnival procession with travel from Horse Guards Parade to Buckingham Palace via Whitehall. The gold state carriage will lead the pageant.

The event is expected to combine street arts, theatre, music, circus, carnival and costume. Children from across the UK will participate in the 'river of hope' procession down The Mall, holding silk flags to emulate moving water.

It is hoped the Queen will make a balcony appearance as the festivities come to a close. The finale will feature Ed Sheeran singing the national anthem in front of the palace.

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