LONDON — Thousands of people gathered outside Buckingham Palace for a star-studded concert where two future monarchs will pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth II on Saturday, the third day of a Platinum Jubilee extravaganza marking her 70 years on the throne.
Prince Charles and Prince William, the Queen’s son and grandson, are due to address a live audience of 22,000 and millions more on television. The event featuring Alicia Keys, Queen and Adam Lambert will take place in a temporary amphitheater built around the Victoria Memorial outside the palace.
David Beckham and tennis player Emma Raducanu are among the attendees, while Diana Ross will close the show with her first UK live performance in 15 years. The concert is also set to feature a pre-recorded performance by Elton John.
The 96-year-old monarch is expected to miss the evening’s outdoor event, which could be hit with rain. The queen has had problems moving around lately, which the palace describes as “episodic mobility issues”, limiting her public appearances in recent months.
The news that the Queen was unable to attend the concert on Saturday did not spoil the festive atmosphere among the crowd.
“It’s a magical experience… (It) will never happen again in our lifetimes, and it’s absolutely amazing to be a part of it,” said Sam Ahcquoim, from Cornwall in south-west England. ‘England. “I got really, really excited and just can’t wait to get in there now and start dancing.”
The Sovereign also opted out of attending the Epsom Derby on Saturday. Instead, she was represented at the prestigious annual horse race by her daughter, Princess Anne, who appeared in the royal box with her family as the crowd cheered and waved Union flags.
The Queen is widely known as a horse enthusiast and she has only missed the Epsom Derby a handful of times. On Saturday, five of her former racehorses paraded and 40 jockeys who rode for the Queen formed a guard of honor before the national anthem was played.
“She has been breeding horses for over 60 years. She knows all the bloodlines and she’s won a lot of races and she’s very competent,” Frankie Dettori, who lined up part of the course with other jockeys, told the BBC.
“I’m sure today she will find a TV and watch it live because she loves the Derby so much,” he added.
It was the second time in as many days that the Queen’s mobility issues prevented crowds from seeing her.
On Friday, the Queen skipped a special Thanksgiving service in her honor at St Paul’s Cathedral in London. Palace officials said she felt “some discomfort” at events the day before, including waving to huge crowds from Buckingham Palace.
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, were among nearly 50 members of the royal family who gathered in St Paul’s on Friday to honor the absent head of state. It was the couple’s first public appearance in the UK since stepping back from royal duties and moving to California two years ago.
In another sign of a thaw in relations, royal accounts on Twitter wished Harry and Meghan’s daughter Lilibet a happy first birthday. Lilibet turned one on Saturday. She and her older brother, Archie, have yet to make an appearance on this trip.
“Wishing Lilibet a very happy 1st birthday!” the royal family’s account tweeted.
Meanwhile, other members of the Royal Family traveled to Wales and Northern Ireland as part of celebrations across the UK.
William and his wife Kate brought two of their three children – Prince George, 8, and Princess Charlotte, 7 – to Cardiff Castle in Wales ahead of a separate concert in the castle grounds in honor of the Queen.
The Queen’s youngest son, Prince Edward, and his wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex, visited a 1950s-themed seaside funfair in Belfast. Edward tried his hand at pulling a pint of Guinness in a restaurant, while Sophie attended a 50s and 60s dance demonstration.
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