Mela at Buckingham Palace to mark Queen’s coronation

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Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation anniversary celebrations in the Buckingham Palace have the feel of a country fair, or rather a posh version of Indian mela, with food, drinks, dance, music and an array of things on sale.

The “royal effect,” which calculated the influence of the British royalty on increase in business, was seen in effect during the wedding of Prince William with Kate Middleton in April 2011 and the Diamond Jubilee celebrations last year.
The UK government has calculated the “royal effect” to be worth £8.8 billion to London between January and March this year. The UK organisers of the festival had ensured special invitations for senior buyers from countries like Brazil, Russia, India and China to secure more contracts for the British businesses. A huge contingent of Chinese journalists had been invited to attend the festival to boost exports. The royal family, with only convalescing Prince Philip, expectant mother Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, and Princes William and Harry missing, attended the preview of the festival, which is focusing on British tradition, innovation and excellence.
The Queen accompanied by her son Charles and his wife Camilla, daughter Anne, son Edward and his wife Sophie and grandchildren Zara, Philip and Eugenie, toured the exhibits put up by more than 200 members of the Royal Warrant Holders Association. Kate’s parents Carole and Michael Middleton and siblings Pippa and James Middleton were also invited for the festival.
The three-day festival in the sprawling gardens of Buckingham Palace is highlighting businesses which have royal stamp of approval for quality, excellence and service.
The warrant holding businesses — from chocolatiers, to umbrella makers, to chimney sweeps, to gourmet butcher, to Savile Row tailors, to pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline and to Indian-owned Jaguar Land Rover — display royal coat of arms as sign of endorsement by the British royals. The firms, which supply goods or services for at least five years to the Households of the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh or the Prince of Wales, get a warrant of approval.
The gardens played host to pavilions and marquees highlighting 200 brands, including a pest-control service, coachbuilder, riding whip maker, hotels like the Ritz and Goring, barber services by world’s oldest barbershop Truefitt & Hill, cartridge company, horse weighing scale maker, artisan cheese makers, Scottish smoked salmon providers, jewellers like Garrard and Thomas Fattorini, and 220-year-old pharmacy Dr Harris.
The festival will also host fashion shows detailing British fashion and iconic style and cooking demonstrations and tasting sessions by Britain’s top chefs and restaurants like the Fat Duck and Dinner owned by Heston Blumenthal, master cheese grader Mark Pitts-Tucker, and chef Anton Mossiman.
The Indian connection was provided by Tata-owned Jaguar Land Rover, the only vehicle manufacturer with royal warrants from the Queen, Prince Philip and Prince Charles. It even had a warrant from the Queen Mother.
The Tata contingent was led by Dr David Landsman, the new director of Tata Limited, the UK subsidiary of Tata Sons. His predecessor Syed Anwar Hasan, who will retire as director in October, was also present. Among the cars JLR showcased at Rose Garden and the JLR stand were its latest Jaguar C-X75 Hybrid Supercar Prototype, Jaguar F-TYPE, 1948 Land Rover Series I, 1953 Land Rover Royal ceremonial vehicle known as State IV, and 1955 Jaguar Mark VIIM Saloon.
The Indian accent was provided by the drummers and bhangra dancers of the Dhol Foundation, who performed in front of the West Terrace of the Buckingham Palace, which provided the backdrop for the concert.
The gala concert, which featured artists like Kiri Te Kanawa, Katherine Jenkins, Russell Watson, pop group The Feeling featuring actor Dominic West, had a strong focus on the youth as performances honoured the Queen, wearing a lilac dress, watching the gala show from the royal pavilion accompanied by her family. Young performers at the gala concert included the National Youth Orchestra, English National Ballet, Sylvia Young Theatre School, and Welsh choir Only Boys Aloud, highlighting the future of performance art before the 87-year-old queen.
The highlight of the concert was Eric Whitacre’s pioneering “virtual choir,” which featured 8,409 videos of 5,905 singers from 101 countries singing Fly to Paradise. The festival, which will end on Sunday, has sold out it tickets — £30 for the day visit and £90 for the gala concert — and some 60,000 visitors are expected to attend.