Platinum Jubilee: Zara Tindall attends Tropping The Colour

Zara Tindall was stunning scarlet today for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.  

The Queen’s granddaughter donned a £450 silk Beulah London Darsha dress teamed with a Juliette Botterill ‘Floral Blossom Percher’ hat and her Rolex watch as she got ready to watch Trooping The Colour with her husband Mike. 

In an Instagram post this morning, he said they were looking forward to the next few days  ‘celebrating one of the greatest woman on this planet’. 

The couple stopped off at The Stafford, London, to support Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity GOSH, of which the Queen is patron, and artist Carne Griffiths on the release of his portrait ‘The Platinum Queen’ before heading to Buckingham Palace for the Trooping The Colour ceremony.

His portrait depicts the young Queen Elizabeth shortly before her coronation almost seven decades ago.

Griffiths, known for using tea, ink and alcohol in his work, is releasing 70 limited edition prints – as well as artist proofs – to mark the monarch’s Platinum Jubilee, one for each year of her historic reign.

The couple are not part of the parade, but will watch the action with other members of the royal family from the Major General’s Office.

Zara and Mike Tindall stopped off at The Stafford, London, to support Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity GOSH, of which the Queen is patron, and artist Carne Griffiths on the release of his portrait ‘The Platinum Queen’ before heading to Buckingham Palace for the Trooping The Colour ceremony 

The Duchess of Cambridge and her three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis waved for cheering crowds at Trooping the Colour today before the Queen’s arrival, as they began the celebrations in style.

Three carriages left the forecourt of Buckingham Palace carrying members of the Royal Family down The Mall this morning, with the Duchess of Cornwall riding alongside Kate Middleton and her children in the first carriage.

They were followed in the glorious sunshine by the Earl and Countess of Wessex with their son James, Viscount Severn, and finally the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence in the third carriage.

Louis sat between his older siblings George and Charlotte in a carriage, with Kate and Camilla sat opposite. The children, who were dressed in a light blue, navy and white colour scheme, waved to the crowds – and at one point Charlotte appeared to push Louis’s hand down, while the Princess squinted in the sunshine as the carriage left.

Prince Charles, Prince William and Princess Anne rode on horses during the traditional carriage procession which left Buckingham Palace ahead of Trooping the Colour, also known as the Birthday Parade, at the start of festivities.

As Kate, Camilla and the children left in their carriage, a riding groom had an issue with her horse which refused to move. The carriage had to swerve to avoid the animal which was eventually persuaded to join the procession.

Zara, 41, who is the Queen’s eldest granddaughter, lives on Princess Anne’s Gatcombe Park Estate with her former rugby player husband Mike Tindall, and their three children, Mia, 8, Lena, 3, and Lucas, one. 

She is an accomplished equestrian and Olympian and despite being a granddaughter of the monarch and cousin of a future king, Zara has kept a relatively low public profile and often spends her weekends at sporting events.

She and Mike have no official duties but are regulars at royal family events, such as church services and important milestones such as the Jubilee.  

Griffiths, known for using tea, ink and alcohol in his work, is releasing 70 limited edition prints – as well as artist proofs – to mark the monarch’s Platinum Jubilee, one for each year of her historic reign

In March, their daughter Mia accompanied her parents to Prince Philip’s memorial service at Westminster Abbey, one of her most high profile royal events to date.  

However, Zara and her family will not appear on the balcony during the flypast at 1pm as they have done in previous years. 

Her Majesty was forced to shave the numbers to ‘those members of the royal family who are currently undertaking official public duties on behalf of the Queen’. 

However, exceptions have been made for her great-granchildren Louis, Charlotte and George and Princess Anne’s husband.

It’s likely Zara will, however, join the family at the service of thanksgiving for the Queen at St Paul’s on Friday, alongside the Duke and Duchess of Sussex who have flown in from California.

In what is set to be a gripping – and highly public – family reunion, the Sussexes have brought along three-year-old Archie and Lilibet, nearly one. The children are likely to meet their cousins Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis as well as Zara’s children. 

Lilibet has never been introduced to her royal relatives, while Archie has not been in the UK since he was six months old. 

The Queen leaves Windsor Castle with her lady-in-waiting Lady Susan Hussey this morning to head to Buckingham Palace

Kate also sported a sapphire and diamond necklace, which perfectly complemented the bright white dress

The Duchess of Cambridge , 40, looked in great spirits as she smiled and waved at adoring crowds along stepmother-in-law Camilla and her three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis

Lady Louise Windsor was the picture of poise as she joined her parents and younger brother for The Queen’s Birthday Parade to kick off the Platinum Jubilee celebrations

The Queen’s granddaughter, 18, looked elegant in a pink floral dress as she took her seat alongside Prince Edward, the Countess of Wessex and James, Viscount Severn, 14, for the procession down The Mall

Crowds covered in Union Jack flags gathered early on The Mall today to secure a prime spot for the biggest royal celebration in decades – as four days of events finally begin with Trooping the Colour. 

Royal superfans have adorned themselves in red, white and blue blazers, flags and hats as they lined The Mall this morning to watch the Queen’s historic birthday parade kick off at 10am.

Groups cracked out glasses of bubbly and began singing God Save the Queen as early as 8am today –  waking up the hardcore fans who have slept in chairs, tents and even on the pavement overnight to secure a prime spot for today’s celebrations.

Devoted royalists will watch from the famous street leading up to Buckingham Palace from Trafalgar Square for the traditional Trooping the Colour.

The military ceremony – which has been used to mark a British Monarch’s official birthday for 260 years – will be carried out by 1st Battalion Irish Guards, plus more than 1,500 officers and soldiers from the Household Division. 

Prince Charles will take the Salute, joined by Prince William, a Colonel in the regiment and Princess Anne. 

Royal fans across the country who aren’t lucky enough to have a space along The Mall can watch events unfold on huge screens in nearby St James Park, or in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh or Bute Park in Cardiff. 

Royal fans sing the national anthem as they gather along the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace in London

Huge numbers of people have already arrived on The Mall today decked out in Union Jack flags as they celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee

Large crowds of revellers occupy Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square for the Platinum Jubilee celebrations today

More than 350 horses and hundreds of military musicians will be involved in the procession, in which members of the Royal Family will travel on horseback and in carriages down the Mall to Horse Guards Parade, where the ceremony takes place. 

In a show of the resilience that has marked her record-breaking reign, the Queen has vowed to make two appearances on the Buckingham Palace balcony on Thursday, the first day of her Jubilee celebrations.

Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, William and the Duchess of Cambridge, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, Anne, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the Duke of Kent, Princess Alexandra and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence will be on the balcony with her – to watch a flypast which is due to take place at about 1pm. 

The six-minute display by 71 aircraft will include the Red Arrows and the Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

Today will mark the first day of the four-day celebrations to mark the Queen’s 70th year on the throne. A special Service of Thanksgiving will take place at St Paul’s Cathedral tomorrow, followed by a Party at the Palace event on Saturday, before the big grandstand finish on Sunday with the Jubilee Pageant through the streets of London.

Ahead of the celebrations today, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and their children arrived in the UK, marking daughter Lilibet’s first time in the country, ahead of today’s first of the Platinum Jubilee events.

The Sussexes left LAX airport with their children Archie and Lilibet, who will meet her great-grandmother for the first time as she turns one on Saturday.

The family of four landed in a London airport this afternoon, with a small team of staffers, Page Six reported.

One source suggested they left overnight last night, and would have been landing in London this afternoon after a 12 hour flight — just months after Harry claimed he was ‘unable to return home’ because is too dangerous.

On June 4, their daughter Lilibet will be marking her first birthday. The Queen is likely to miss her favourite sporting event, the Derby horse races at Epsom, for the little one’s celebrations, as she meets her for the first time.

While the couple are expected to attend Trooping the Colour as spectators tomorrow, Andrew will not, a military source told MailOnline.

As colonel of the Grenadier Guards, Andrew has previously played a key role in the ceremony, riding out by the Queen’s side as the regiment’s representative.

Since being stripped of the title earlier this year the Duke of York was not expected to play an active part in the event, but the possibility of him appearing with other royals on Horse Guards Parade as a spectator had previously been left open.

Both Andrew and the Sussexes have already been barred from appearing on the Buckingham Palace to watch the RAF Red Arrows’ flypast.

A record 12million people are gearing up for street parties held in the Queen’s honour during the special extended bank holiday weekend. 

Millions of people across the nation will be celebrating the Platinum Jubilee at patriotic street parties while live music, light projections and life-size cut outs of the Queen herald the historic occasion over the next four days. 

Events range from family picnics to a record-breaking 5,000-strong street party in the North West, in what the Met Office has said will be a quintessentially British summer bank holiday of drizzle and patchy sunshine. 

The largest party celebrating the Queen’s record-breaking 70-year reign is set to be Morecambe Bay’s Big Jubilee Lunch on Sunday, which is hosting around 5,000 people at over 500 tables overlooking the sea. 

Official celebrations will begin at 1pm with a Samba dance down the promenade, before Lord Shuttleworth – the Lord Lieutenant of Lancashire – cuts a replica cake of the kind the Queen cut at the G7 Big Lunch at Eden last year.

Organiser Luke Trevaskis said the Lancashire seaside town is ‘incredibly proud’ to be hosting Jubilee celebrations. 

Mr Trevaskis, who is the chief executive at Morecambe Town Council, told the PA News Agency: ‘This is going to be the first major event Morecambe has had coming out of lockdown, which was a very, very difficult period of time for so many people.