Alarms went off at 6.30am so we all jumped out of bed (not really, some of us had a sore head from the wine the night before so stumbled to be perfectly honest), hit the shower, had some breakfast and were out the door. Weather forcasts vary but we settled on comfortable shoes, pants and layers as there was a possibility of rain. We all wore a fascinator, with Yvonne wearing a plastic tiara. We all looked gorgeous.
We black cabbed it into central London and were pleased we did as there was hardly any traffic and it was easier than catching a couple of different trains. The taxi driver dropped us off at the end of the street in which was the hotel where Katherine (now being official) was staying.
After the cars sped past our friends on the street, they tried to meet up with us but were locked out. There was a crowd surge and some broke through the barriers, but they didn't. We then found out we were locked into our area and as we couldn't see what was going on, we were given a commentary on progress when text messages from Australia got through. Next drama was the potential bomb threat...some idiots had left a camouflage-patterned back on the lawn. After calling out to see who owned it...crowd in our area became silent...trying to flag down police...running up to the front of the crowd to call out to people who we thought owned it...the police arrived on mass - about 12 of them and not just your ordinary police! Anyway, owner of the bag was found...told off for their stupidity....police thanked the crowd for their vigilance...cheers all round for our work. Phew...a few people got quite anxious there.
Anyway, we had audio over speakers and heard part of the wedding (our friends had got in to meet us by this stage) and there were huge cheers and flag waving for the ï do's."
Then came the part we had waited hours for...the balcony scene. I know it is hard to see, but really zoomed in, you can see Prince William and Princess Katherine, and then we had the fly past.
After waiting for the crowd to disperse, we made our way along the Mall and St James Park to continue to soak up the atmosphere, eat, drink and be merry.
By 5pm we were exhausted so once again got a black cab back to Clapham to settle in and watch the whole event in front of the tv whilst eating Indian and drinking champers. A couple of others came over and joined us so we had a great debate on who looked good, who didn't and our overall impressions. Basically I thought the whole thing was spectacular, William looked very dapper, Kate looked stunning and so did her sister....and I wouldn't be either of them if my life depended on it as the public scrutiny was out of this world. Overall though, people were very happy for the couple and that was very warming to see.
We black cabbed it into central London and were pleased we did as there was hardly any traffic and it was easier than catching a couple of different trains. The taxi driver dropped us off at the end of the street in which was the hotel where Katherine (now being official) was staying.
Our strategy was really quite flimsy - just to get into London and see something, but as we got closer, we decided to head to Buckingham Palace. It was at this point some of us decided to stand on the street and wait for the cars to drive past, whilst others found a spot in the park beside B/ham Palace where we could see the balcony. We knew we would have difficulty seeing much so had taped all the tv programs so we could see the wedding when we got back to the house. I was with Olly and Yvonne in the park...Yvonne found us coffee, whilst Olly went and bought a picnic blanket, water and pastries...all set then for a 3 hour wait. It was fabulous watching people dressed up and enjoying the atmosphere.
After the cars sped past our friends on the street, they tried to meet up with us but were locked out. There was a crowd surge and some broke through the barriers, but they didn't. We then found out we were locked into our area and as we couldn't see what was going on, we were given a commentary on progress when text messages from Australia got through. Next drama was the potential bomb threat...some idiots had left a camouflage-patterned back on the lawn. After calling out to see who owned it...crowd in our area became silent...trying to flag down police...running up to the front of the crowd to call out to people who we thought owned it...the police arrived on mass - about 12 of them and not just your ordinary police! Anyway, owner of the bag was found...told off for their stupidity....police thanked the crowd for their vigilance...cheers all round for our work. Phew...a few people got quite anxious there.
Anyway, we had audio over speakers and heard part of the wedding (our friends had got in to meet us by this stage) and there were huge cheers and flag waving for the ï do's."
Then came the part we had waited hours for...the balcony scene. I know it is hard to see, but really zoomed in, you can see Prince William and Princess Katherine, and then we had the fly past.
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| The London Town Cryer |
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| The aftermath |
In St James Park we had a couple of g&t's (or wines), food and then felt able to keep going....big long day by this stage. We walked all the way up the Mall to Admiralty Arch, then continued along to Regent St that looked spectacular with all the bunting on display.
By 5pm we were exhausted so once again got a black cab back to Clapham to settle in and watch the whole event in front of the tv whilst eating Indian and drinking champers. A couple of others came over and joined us so we had a great debate on who looked good, who didn't and our overall impressions. Basically I thought the whole thing was spectacular, William looked very dapper, Kate looked stunning and so did her sister....and I wouldn't be either of them if my life depended on it as the public scrutiny was out of this world. Overall though, people were very happy for the couple and that was very warming to see.
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