‘MRS B, MRS B, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?’
As it says in the nursery rhyme, ‘I’ve been up to London to visit the Queen.’
Back in January among all the everyday letters and parcels which arrive in the examinations office, there was a letter addressed to me personally. Needless to say that I did not expect what followed. It was a special letter, inviting me to a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace in recognition of my services to Education.
At first, I could not quite believe that it was true but Marion Lane, my devoted colleague confirmed what I had read. Later on that day, I found out who had nominated me and was able to thank Mary Lamb (QCDA) our centre support officer. Through her dedicated approach, Mary has been a font of knowledge and support to not only my centre but to all examination officers of our consortia. That evening, I filled in my reply slip. I was of course accepting the invitation and would go accompanied by my husband. By the end of March, I was informed that the invitation was for Tuesday 22 June.
The first task was to find an outfit suitable for a royal occasion – any woman would enjoy this part and I was no exception. At the end of May, I received the official invitation from Buckingham Palace and it was time to organise my husband’s required attire so it was another trip to Bluewater!
The special day finally arrived and the weather was beautiful. We drove to London and parked at the top of The Mall as indicated on the parking permit, received with the invitation. There were many people making their way towards the Palace so we followed on and joined the queue down Constitution Hill. Shortly before three o’clock, the security guards checked our identity before letting us into the courtyard and then the garden itself.
What a garden! A vast area opened up before us including a lake, wide stretches of lawn, immaculate flower beds and so many mature trees. We wandered through the garden before making our way to one of the tea tents for refreshments. As we finished drinking our cup of tea, we heard the Yeomen of the Guard and knew that soon the Queen would come out of the Buckingham Palace. Gentlemen at Arms formed lanes with the guests ready for the Queen and members of her Family to walk through. We were not part of the Queen’s lane, but Prince Philip’s. As the Prince was making his way to the royal tent for his tea, I caught a distant sight of the Queen.
We wandered off towards the lake and sat by it for a while until we heard the sound of the Yeomen. As we moved towards them in an attempt to see the Queen, a Gentleman at Arms asked us to follow him and placed us strategically against the wall of the Palace. Soon a few other guests in wheelchairs joined us with their carers and we awaited the Queen who had by now left the royal tent. She came along and greeted each of us; she was followed by Prince Philip, the Earl and the Countess of Wessex, the Prince & Princess Michael of Kent and their daughter.
The day was coming to an end and people started to drift away. On the way back to our car, a kind person offered to take this picture of us – this was the final touch to a very wonderful day!
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