The special Jubilee bank holiday is upon us and there are plenty of ways to mark and celebrate this historic milestone of a British monarch’s 70-year reign.
From today (June 1), a replica Coronation crown measuring 4.2m wide x 3.8m high will adorn the front of Nottingham’s Council House. Sponsored by Capital One, inspiration for the crown has come from an image used in the photo exhibition of Old Market Square in 1953, when it was elaborately dressed for the Coronation.
Below, in Old Market Square a giant floral jubilee-themed 70 will be created with over 5,100 silver, blue and purple plants. The display has been sponsored by Nottingham BID.
Covering a total surface area of 57m2 , all the plants were grown at the city’s Woodthorpe Park Nurseries. Post-installation, on 10 June, all the plants will be bought back to Woodthorpe Park Plant Shop to be sold to customers with some to be donated to local care homes for the elderly.
Also in the square from today will be a large-scale, open air photo exhibition to celebrate the jubilee. Images chosen by a panel of experts from the city and county archives have been collected from a range of partners. The exhibition is sponsored by Geldards – one of the country’s leading law firms.
A collection of 22 images, celebrate the Queen’s visits to Nottingham over the last 70 years from the Coronation tour in 1955 through to her most recent visit for the Diamond Jubilee in 2012. The images also look at how Nottingham people have celebrated significant royal occasions over the years.
The exhibition will open to the public in Old Market Square between 8am and 8pm daily.
Tomorrow evening, as part of a chain of Queen’s Platinum Jubilee beacons, four Nottingham neighbourhoods will light their beacons, joining thousands of others throughout the nations and regions of the UK and across the Commonwealth. All beacons will be lit at 9.45pm. The fourth event is by invitation only at Bulwell Bogs.
Read about all the city’s jubilee events here.