Sapphire Anniversary

As a pair, they've been in the spotlight for the entire 65 years of their marriage. Surviving that alone is a major accomplishment. These two, however, still seem completely at ease with each other and the duty-bound lives they have lived. I think that's pretty remarkable.

Happy 65th Anniversary today, Phil and Lilibet.

Brilliant

We're back from Tofino after a wonderful week away. We caught the Opening Ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics on Friday at the end of our vacation... if you haven't already seen this brilliant James Bond segment, we highly, highly, highly recommend it. 

Buckingham Palace released a statement over the weekend confirming that the footman was not an actor, that the corgis were indeed, Royal ones (Monty, Willow and Holly), and that the Queen had been "delighted" to be involved. Her only stipulation in filming was that she be allowed to choose what she wore (not a bad idea, based on some of the outfits of previous Bond girls). Danny Boyle, who directed the opening ceremonies, also confirmed that the Queen lived up to her nickname of "One-Take Windsor" and said that both Daniel Craig and the corgis needed several takes to get their parts right. All I can say is that this settles it: QEII is utterly awesome. Full stop.

(our other favourite parts of the opening ceremonies were the lighting of the cauldron and this performance by the London Symphony and "special" guest)

And finally... the Jubilee Celebration

Here are some highlights of this weekend's official Jubilee Celebration. Prince Philip unfortunately, missed the final two days due to illness; despite his unfortunate absence, the party continued.

Prince Charles' speech at the end of the concert

Jubilee Blessing written to conclude the Service of Thanksgiving

Balcony appearance and military fly by on the last day of celebration (with a wonderfully rousing version of the national anthem sung by the crowd at 7:45 and three cheers for the Queen 9:25)

And finally,  a word from the Jubilee girl herself. 

Celebrating Jubilee: Happy and Glorious

With today being the final day of Diamond Jubilee Celebrations, I've come to my second last photo montage. Tomorrow, we'll look at highlights of this weekend's celebrations, but today we'll finish our look at the Queen's past 60 years. Enjoy!

Gospel Jubilee

If you haven't heard (!!), this weekend marks the official celebration of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. This afternoon, the celebration will get underway with a massive floating parade of boats (including several with the Royal Family) down the Thames River in London.

For music today, I am going back 10 years to the Queen's Golden Jubilee. To celebrate her 50th anniversary on the throne, she hosted a  concert in the back garden of Buckingham Palace. One of the performers was the London Adventist Chorale; their versions of two gospel classics were just fantastic. 

Skip ahead to in the video to 18:40 for the first song, Great Getting-up Morning. The second piece, Jubilee (Great Day) follows immediately afterward at 22:30.

Celebrating Jubilee: Documentaries

There have been some wonderful documentaries produced for the Queen's Jubilee this year. Here are some of my favourites:

The Diamond Queen Episode 1: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4

The Diamond Queen Episode 2: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4

The Diamond Queen Episode 3

The Queen's Palaces: Buckingham Palace

The Queen's Palaces: Hollyrood House Part 1 and Part 2

The Queen's Palaces: Windsor Castle Part 1 and Part 2

And finally, this tribute from The Prince of  Wales. He shared home movies taken by his parents that have never before been seen by the public- it's just great. 

Celebrating Jubilee: Artwork

While I wasn't initially that impressed with the official logo chosen for the Queen's Jubilee (the graphic here on the left), it grew on me substantially after I found out it was one of hundreds of pieces of children's artwork requested by Buckingham Palace to commemorate this event. The Queen specifically asked for children's artwork to be part of the celebration, and a number of images have been released to the public. For several weeks last month, some of this artwork decorated Buckingham Palace as well (see the bottom two photographs). The artwork, as you see here, really is wonderful.

Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail and Geoff Robinson Photography

Celebrating Jubilee: Highs and Lows

Like any vocation (or life, for that matter), The Queen's reign has been punctuated by both low and high points. Here are some of the most memorable moments over her 60 years on the throne.

Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail, London Telegraph, Getty Images, Corbis, Zimbio, Reuters, LNP, Rex Features, and Press Association.


The music is "Walking to Shoot" by Patrick Doyle and the Third Movement Allegro from the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 6 in B flat major. A larger screen version of this video can be viewed here.

Celebrating Jubilee: The Lighter Side

The Queen may be many things, but insiders all say that she's a woman with a wicked sense of humour. A gifted mimic, well-known for her enjoyment of  minor mishaps at public events (and lively games of charades), she is known to enjoy the lighter side of life. For someone in her late 80s who has been stuck in the same job for 60 years (with no prospect of retirement), I suspect a sense of humour is a necessary thing.

Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail, London Telegraph, Getty Images, Corbis, Zimbio, Freaking News, Rex Features, and Press Association.

The music used here is the Finale from Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saens; Click here to see a larger screen version of the video.

Celebrtating Jubilee: The Modern Monarch

I find it amazing to think about how much the world has changed since the Queen began her reign 60 years ago.  The Queen has been criticized at times for remaining too traditional or old fashioned, but I think she has shown considerable adaptability to technological and social change. Is she in tune with modern times? Perhaps not completely... but she certainly is relevant and remaining relevant over 60 years is an amazing accomplishment.

The music is one of Jeff's favourite retro techno tracks- it seemed rather fitting for our part retro part modern Queen. Click here for a larger screen version.

Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail, London Telegraph, Getty Images, Corbis, Zimbio, The Sun, Camera Press, Rex Features, Margaret Rhodes, the Earl of Snowdon, Reuters, and Press Association.

Celebrating Jubilee: Family

Because I'm behind on my Jubilee celebration posts and the actual event is happening this coming weekend, this week is going to be Jubilee week! Each day, we'll look at another aspect of the Queen's life and reign in build up to her big celebration.

We're going pick up where we left off, with Prince Philip. Family is clearly important to these two, and while their family has had more than their share of soap opera moments, they seem to be a pretty tight bunch. Beyond being monarch, we've seen glimpses of the Queen as a daughter, sister, wive, mother, grandmother, and now great-grandmother. I think it's a big part of who she is.

Here is a short but very sweet film clip of the Queen, in 1992, taking her grandchildren riding at Balmoral.

And here's some of the rest of the Queen's family. The music used in this video is Waltz No. 1 (Nunley's Carousel) by Billy Joel. A larger screen version can be seen here.

Celebrating Jubilee: Partnership

Looking at the Queen's life and accomplishments over the past 60 years, it's impossible to not include Prince Philip.... he's just always at her side. While none of us will ever know the true state of their relationship, they certainly seem to have a silent language between them and have shared more time together than most couples. Queen Elizabeth has said, on several occasions, that Britain owes Prince Philip a greater debt than anyone realizes for the amount of work he has done on behalf of the country... and while he does seem like a cantankerous fellow more often than not, they obviously have something very special between them. I think it's  quite sweet.

UPDATE: A few of you have asked about the music in this video. It's "Waltz of My Heart" by British composer Ivor Novello.

Celebrating Jubilee: The Casual Queen

While the Queen spends a lot of time in a tiara, it's not all glitz and glamour. She is a country girl at heart, and much of what she loves to do is tied to country life. So what does she do for fun? Here are a few things.

                              And of course- she hangs out with her corgis.

                              

There is also great interview here with Prince Philip about the Royal Windsor Horse show, which includes some footage of his great passion, carriage driving.

Celebrating Jubilee: More Sparkle

When my dear friend P and I went to England to celebrate our 30th birthdays, we trekked around London to cathedrals, evensong services, museums and all of the Royal Palaces. We happened to be in London for three major exhibits of royal dresses and spent several afternoons unabashedly gushing over the frocks of  Queen Maud of Norway,  Princess Diana, and Queen Elizabeth. P mentioned on the phone the other day that while our feet were sore, we were gloriously happy. It was such a great trip.

The exhibition that surprised me the most was one of  the Queen's ballgowns from the early years of her reign. 1950s couture is something to behold and these gowns were just spectacular. Until this exhibition, I thought that the Queen's ballgowns were more function and less style, but I was wrong. Looking through the Queen's evening dresses over the past 60 years provides an amazing view of how both she and fashion have changed... and a reminder why the 80s are best left in the past.

Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail, London Telegraph, Getty Images, Corbis, Zimbio, Press Association and the Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor blog. 

Celebrating Jubilee: State Glitter

The last two posts in our Jubilee Celebration showed how extensively the Queen has traveled during her reign. These many official tours inevitably involve state banquets; for these very formal occasions, the Queen almost always wears white. White, with diamonds.

But why always white? For state dinners, the dress code is usually white tie and sashes. Sashes are part of the insignia that accompanies membership in an order of chivalry or merit. Most countries, even ones that don't have a monarchy, have some sort of honors to bestow. Each order has its own specific rules regarding who can award it, what it can be awarded for, and who can receive it. The Queen often meets this criteria and by now, 60 years into her reign, she has received an order from just about every country that has one to give. Understandably, the Queen needs to wear these orders when she is visiting the country that bestowed it. The problem, however, is that each order comes with unique instructions of how (or where) to wear it, and a uniquely coloured sash or ribbon. Figuring out gowns to match or coordinate with all of these different sashes simply became too complicated, so our practical Queen Elizabeth took up wearing white evening as it matches everything. I can't say that would have been my choice, but I understand the need for simplicity (because, who ever wants to show up with a gown that clashes with your sash!). Here is a peek at some of the Queen's snowy white gala gowns. 


Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail, London Telegraph, Getty Images, Corbis, Zimbio and Press Association and the Royal Order of Sartorial Splendor blog.

The Queen wearing sashes from: Jordan, France, Norway, Thailand, South Africa, The UK (Order of the Garter), Poland and Denmark

Celebrating Jubilee: Queen of Canada

If Queen Elizabeth is the most traveled monarch in history, one wonders where her favourite places on earth might be. If repeat visits are any indication, Canada ranks high on her list. She has visited here more times than any other (24, to be exact) and usually lets us know how warmly she regards us Canadians and our beautiful country in her heart. Here are some highlights of her many visits.

Photos are courtesy of The Daily Mail, London Telegraph, Getty Images, Corbis, Zimbio and Press Association.




1957

Opening the 23rd session of Canadian Parliament

Reading the speech from the throne, in her Coronation gown

1959

Welcomed back for a two and a half month tour by Prime Minister Diefenbaker

At a formal dinner at 24 Sussex Drive, hosted by Prime Minister and Mrs. Diefenbaker

Opening the St. Lawrence Seaway with US President Eisenhower

1967

Riding the mini-rail at Expo '67 in Montreal

Enjoying Expo 67 with Princess Anne and Prince Philip

Meeting a new friend in Kingston (a friend not willing to leave her side!)

1970

Reviewing a boy scout troop in the Northwest Territories

Sporting some SNAZZZZZY go-go boots in The Pas, Manitoba

1971

Sailing from Vancouver to Victoria, again with Princess Anne and Prince Philip

1973

Open top (with another interesting hat) in Thunder Bay

1976

Opening the 1976 Montreal Olympics

1977 (Silver Jubilee Tour)

Leaving Prime Minister Trudeau out in the rain

Delivering the speech from the throne at the opening of Parliament

1982

Signing the repatriation of the Canadian Constitution, 1982

1984

1994

Opening the Commonwealth Games in Vancouver

1997

Sharing a giggly state dinner with Prime Minister Cretien

2010

Visiting a wigwam  in Halifax

Inspecting the troops on Canada Day at Parliament Hill

Facing a wolverine at the Canadian Museum of History

Sporting Maple Leaves on a night out in Nova Scotia