BBC World Service Celebrates Diamond Jubilee
PRESS RELEASE
BBC World
Service Celebrates Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond
Jubilee
22 May 2012. To mark 60 years of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign BBC World Service will broadcast a number of programmes to celebrate her Diamond Jubilee year. The Queen came to the throne on 6 February 1952 and her coronation took place on 2 June 1953. Queen Victoria is the only other monarch in the history of the United Kingdom to have celebrated a Diamond Jubilee. Celebrations will run over an extended weekend from Sat 2 June - Tues 5 June.
Ros Atkins, the World Service’s main presenter for the weekend said: “The enthusiasm and affection that the British people have for the Royal Family is matched by many BBC listeners around the world. It'll be great fun to share the excitement in London while including everyone listening in the party.”
Programmes on BBC World Service will include:
Your World: The Royal Visit
Saturday &
Sunday 26-27 May; 2-3 June
Episode One: People
who’ve come face to face with the Queen share their
experiences. Presenter, Dzifa Gbeho tours Accra with Chris
Hesse, the then President’s official photographer who
followed the Queen’s every move during her first visit to
Ghana in 1961. Dzifa asks why the Queen visited Ghana at
this time when the country had only just gained
independence. Who decides where and when the Queen travels
abroad and who is in charge of organising the finer details
of Royal visits? KB Asante, a retired Diplomat who
witnessed the Queen’s 1961 visit shares his memories of
meeting the Queen and discusses its impact. This first
visit is contrasted with the Queen’s second visit to Ghana
in1999. Dzifa talks to the former Minister of Education,
Ekow Spio Garbrah, who was present when the Queen gave an
unusually politically-pointed speech to Parliament in Accra
during her 1999 visit.
Newshour Special: Sixty
and Counting
26 May - 1 June
Newshour
profiles seven people around the world who have been doing
the same job for 60 years or more. These people reflect
upon the changes that they have seen over the course of
their career, both in their chosen field, and in the world
around them. They also explain how they’ve managed to
sustain such a long working life, what drove them and what
inspired them. Plus they share the secrets of a long and
happy career, how they feel in the world today, and their
plans for the future.
The profiles will be broadcast
within all editions of Newshour from 26 May to 1
June.
WHYS from the Royal Commonwealth Society on
The Strand
Friday, 1st June, 12.00-12.30;
18.00-19.00 BST
World Have Your Say will come
from the Royal Commonwealth Society on the Strand in London.
WHYS will link-up with listeners across the Commonwealth
and ask does the institution still have relevance in the
modern world?
Also during the Diamond Jubilee weekend BBC World Service will bring listeners coverage of the celebrations from Saturday 2 June to Tuesday 5 June which includes:
• Epsom Derby
Friday
1st June/Saturday 2nd June
Sportsworld will be at the
Epsom Downs racecourse, recording at Ladies Day on Friday, 1
June and will also cover the Queen attending the Epsom Derby
on Saturday 2nd June.
• Diamond Jubilee River
Pageant
Sunday 3rd June, 14.00-18.00 BST
At
high water in the afternoon of Sunday 3 June, up to a
thousand boats will muster on the River Thames in
preparation for Her Majesty The Queen to lead the Thames
Diamond Jubilee Pageant. Rob Broomby will be on the Thames
Riverside as the Queen embarks on The Spirit of Chartwell
and joins the flotilla. Ros Atkins will report from a
special Routemaster bus in Battersea Park for the afternoon,
hearing from locals and visitors who have gathered to watch
the Diamond Jubilee River Pageant.
• Jubilee
Concert at Buckingham Palace
Monday 4 June, 19.00
– 23.00 BST
The concert will be attended by The
Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh and other Members of the Royal
Family. Staged in the surroundings of the Queen Victoria
Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace, the concert will
include classic hits and one-off collaborations from artists
including Shirley Bassey, Alfie Boe, Jools Holland, Jessie
J, Elton John, Tom Jones, Lang Lang, Annie Lennox, Madness,
Paul McCartney, and Ed Sheeran. Ros Atkins will be
commentating, whilst Chloe Tilley will be with the crowds on
The Mall.
• Jubilee Beacons
Monday 4th
June
Thousands of beacons will be lit around the world
on Monday 4 June to commemorate Her Majesty The Queen's 60
year reign over the UK and as Head of the Commonwealth.
• Procession & Service of
Thanksgiving
Tuesday 5 June, 10.00 – 12.00
BST
The Queen and other members of the Royal Family
will attend a National Service of Thanksgiving at St.
Paul’s Cathedral. It will include a prayer written, at
The Queen’s direction, by the Chapter of St Paul’s
Cathedral in honour of the Diamond Jubilee. Dan Damon
reports from the Service with Nicholas Witchell in a special
two-hour edition of World Update .
Plus, at 14.00-15.30 BST, there will be coverage of the Royal Family travelling from Westminster Hall to Buckingham Palace by carriage along a processional route, and the Royal family appearing on the balcony. Nuala McGovern will be on The Mall talking to the crowds.
Ends –