It was a service of thanksgiving for an absent Queen, a St Paul’s Cathedral celebration to mark the longest reign of any British monarch. But the person to whom it was dedicated was far away at Windsor Castle, forced to watch on television, indisposed by the mobility problems that have plagued her jubilee year.
Senior royals, parliamentarians and diplomats joined 400 members of the public honoured for key roles they have played in their communities in the 2,000-strong congregation to celebrate the 70-year reign of the Queen, a lover of horses whose time on the throne, they heard, reflected “the distance of Aintree more than the sprints of Epsom”.
