Events in 2012 for the Diamond Jubilee in Britain

The Queen will make a series of regional visits around the UK, and there will be a programme of events throughout the year to mark the Diamond Jubilee

pTTH7KuPDT9SKskMzogvFW.jpg
Canaletto

Diary of Events May 15 South London May 16-17 North-west England June 2-5 Central weekend June 13-14 East Midlands and East Anglia June 25 and July 25 South-east England July 2-6 Scotland (Holyrood Week) July 11-12 West Midlands July 18-19 North-east England

April 27 to September 9 ‘Royal River: Power, Pageantry and the Thames' The National Maritime Museum, Greenwich

May 4 to October 7 ‘Leonardo da Vinci: Anatomist' The Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace

May 10, 11, 13 The Diamond Jubilee Pageant will take place in the private grounds of Windsor Castle on the evenings of May 10, 11 and 13 during the Horse Show with displays and horses from around the world (www.diamond-jubilee-pageant.com)

May 17 to October 21 ‘The Queen: Art and Image' The National Portrait Gallery and touring

Picture courtesy of the National Maritime Museum

Central weekend, June 2-5

June 2 The Investec Epsom Derby

June 3 The Big Jubilee Lunch Lunch parties, picnics and street parties will be encouraged to bring communities together. The event is being organised by the Big Lunch (www.thebiglunch.com)

The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant Up to 1,000 boats from around the world will form a flotilla and travel down the Thames from Putney to Tower Bridge led by The Queen travelling in the Royal Barge-The Spirit of Chartwell -decked out as a 17th-/18th-century royal galley. The procession will be accompanied by the ringing of church bells, fireworks and music. The event is being organised by The Diamond Jubilee Foundation (www.thamesdiamond jubileepageant.org)

Diamond Jubilee Bank Holiday June 4 The BBC Concert at Buckingham Palace will be televised and tickets are available to UK resi-dents by public ballot. The programme will feature musicians from Britain and the Commonwealth

Jubilee Beacons Across the country, 2012 beacons will be lit and there will be others in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and across the Commonwealth. The Queen will light the National Beacon as she did in 2002 and there will be Church Tower beacons on the battlements of the Tower of London, St James's Palace, London and at The Palace of Holyrood-house, Edinburgh, and Killyleagh Castle, Northern Ireland, among many others.

June 5 Service of thanksgiving A service of thanksgiving is to be held at St Paul's Cathedral, with a formal carriage procession by The Queen

July 31 to September 30 ‘Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration' The Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace, with additional dates

* Subscribe to Country Life and save up to 41%

Country Life

Bringing the quintessential English rural idle to life via interiors, food and drink, property and more Country Life’s travel content offers a window into the stunning scenery, imposing stately homes and quaint villages which make the UK’s countryside some of the most visited in the world.