Friday, April 29, 2011

Royal wedding fever

Garry and I have been taking a trip down memory lane this evening as the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is broadcast live around the world. The pair exchanged their vows before 1900 guests in Westminster Abbey - and a global television audience of two billion people - while another million people waited patiently on the streets of central London. Four out of five free-to-air channels in Australia broadcast the ceremony live; with at least four cable channel also providing live coverage.

So much of what we're seeing brings back personal memories. Where do I start?  For example, we recall the spectacle of the Royal Guard marching down The Mall during the Trooping of the Colour; and waving at the Queen as she rode by in an open carriage.  I also recall the colourful Union Jack bunting hung down the Mall every Spring and the sound of Westminster Abbey's stunning acoustics as the choir practised for an evening service.

However, perhaps our strongest memories are those from one sunny Sunday afternoon last September.  Literally days before Garry's appendix suddenly burst we toured the spectacular State Rooms inside Buckingham Palace. It's hard to believe those same grand rooms are now hosting a lavish wedding reception. While television cameras aren't permitted inside, so vivid are the memories of our tour, I can honestly picture the scene that's probably unfolding as I type this post. London really was our home for the last five years.


UPDATE: May 2, 2011
This fascinating royal wedding factiod was published by the BBC today:

The National Grid said its figures showed a huge surge in demand for power after the service - equivalent to one million kettles being boiled - when the royal couple returned to Buckingham Palace. Over the course of the day power use rose and fell during key moments - with the biggest drop in demand when the couple made their balcony appearance and people stopped what they were doing and turned back to their televisions.

I bet a similar surge in domestic water usage also occured after the wedding as well. We're clearly creatures of habit. 

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