What a fabulous evening it was. Sorry for delay, but I wanted to simply watch the celebrations and not to work on my posts. Also I wanted to mention all the highlights from the event, so I simply needed more time to do so.
Let's start with The Countess of Wessex who was in the Royal Box with her son, Viscount James. The Earl of Wessex and Lady Louise were mysteriously missing, but we later found out why....
This incredible pageant started with the arrival of the main guest of the evening, birthday girl herself, HM The Queen, accompanied by her husband and 'rock', The Duke of Edinburgh. HM and The Duke arrived in the a Scottish State Coach and were greeted by their hosts for the evening, Prince Charles and The Duchess of Cornwall.
Everyone in the royal box greeted HM The Queen with a bow or curtsy. Viscount James took the most adorable bow as captured by photographer Mark Stewart, to view his picture, click here.
The event, presented by Ant & Dec was the culmination of a pageant held over four nights at Windsor and told the story of The Queen’s life from her birth in 1926, through the Second World War, to The Queen’s Coronation in 1953 and a reign spanning more than 60 years.
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The celebrations begun with Gary Barlow singing "Something about this night", with Jaguar F-Type cars riding at incredible speed and soldiers (not sure how many!) presenting number 90 to mark HM's birthday.
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Then Jim Carter took the stage and covered the monarch's childhood years, including adorable show of young Princesses Elizabeth (played by 13-year-old Kinvara Garner) and Margaret learning how to ride a horse. He later introduced his wife Imelda Staunton, who performed a song "Sing, sing, sing, sing" to incredible performance of The Shetland Pony Grand National and Pony Club Mounted Games. I loved every second of it.
Then Jim Carter mentioned how close Royal Family is with Armed Forces and introduced The King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery and their 100 year old guns. King’s Troop is a ceremonial unit of the British Army, quartered at Woolwich. Its duties include the firing of royal salutes on royal anniversaries, such as royal birthdays and state occasions.
Dame Helen Mirren took the audience through the War and how the nation fought against Nazi tyranny. To brighten wartime memories was Alfie Boe singing the Vera Lynn classic "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square". Afterwards was Beverly Knight with "Doin' the jive". Dame Helen later described royal wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh in 1947 and the young Queen's coronation on June 2, 1953. This sequence ended with mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins' rendition of "I Vow To Thee My Country". This must have brought tears to HM's eyes...
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Actor Martin Clunes appeared as president of the British Horse Society, who introduced the performance of The Royal Cavalry of Oman. Omani riders stormed into the arena standing in the saddles and their bagpipers played 'Happy Birthday" for HM. Then we saw wonderful Musical Ride of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment and James Blunt sung "Bonfire Heart".
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Actress Nina Wadia introduced one of my favourites performances of that night - The Top Secret Drum Corps - precision drum corps based in Basel, Switzerland. With 25 drummers and colorguard members, the corps became famous for its demanding six-minute routine performed at the Edinburgh Tattoo in 2003. It's unbelievable what they can do with their drums and sticks! I also liked very much Chilean Huasos and dancers in their show to "Viva Chile" song. Judging from HM's smile, The Queen was enchanted as well!
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It was incredible sequence that finished with Kylie Minogue singing one of my absolute favourite songs of all times " I believe in you". I love Kylie but her show was stolen by the most adorable little pony who performed with horse whisperer, Jean-Francois Pignon. To view video click here - it's a must see! I almost forgot about The Azerbaijani Dancers and Karabakh Horses and Rides! So many amazing shows.
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Actor Damian Lewis told the crowds: 'One of the key pillars of this celebration is the Commonwealth. The Queen's commitment and dedication to it is immense. 'It is a testament to Her Majesty's constant engagement with these nations that she is loved in equal measure by those who have declared independence from the United Kingdom and those to whom the Queen is still head of state.' He introduced The Fijian Army Band and Warriors, The Band of South Australia Police and The New Zealand Army Band.
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The Royal Canadian Mounted Police performed to the "Maple Leaf Forever"sung by The Tenors and afterwards Andrea Bocelli sung "Nelle tue Mani" (Now we are free from Gladiator - incredible movie, incredible song).
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Alan Titchmarsh gave us a quick history of Royal Ascot while HM's love of racing was recreated by a Grand National race staged in the arena with Shetland ponies. There was even the voice of the racing commentator Sir Peter O’Sullevan, brought back to life by impressionist Rory Bremner. Then was the time for regiments and their mascots, consisting of Irish Wolfhound, Otterhound, Shetland Ponies, Drum Horse and even a goat!
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Balmoral, The Queen's favourite home, was represented by caber-tossing and bagpipes, otherwise known as Braemar Gathering. Person responsible for bringing this sequence to life did an outstanding job! Afterwards was a quick game of polo, dogs and their keepers and even cattle! Actually, I think I reacted the same as The Queen, I screamed, COWS!
The best, however, was saved until last - a parade of the Queen’s own horses, ridden by, among others, Prince Edward, The Earl of Wessex and his lovely daughter Lady Louise Windsor. Just imagine how proud her parents and grandparents must have been! It was a highlight of the evening for me!
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We also saw Princess Royal, together with her daughter and the Queen’s granddaughter Zara Tindall riding her eventing horse, Toytown. The show eneded with a big bang! Huge cake and Jess Glynne singing "Hold my Hand". Shirley Bassey gave a sparkling performance of "Diamonds are Forever" - with its neat reference to the Diamond Queen.
I hope you enjoyed this long post, which I am ending with a picture of The Countess of Wessex and Viscount James from royal box. What a treat it must have been to watch it live at Windsor! More info about the celebrations and images of the show at Daily Mail here, Zimbio gallery is here.
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