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To mark the seventieth anniversary of the queen’s succession to the throne of Great Britain, one of London's most iconic spaces – Piccadilly Circus – has received a bit of a royal glow-up. Three of its huge billboards are showing pictures of the monarch as she was at her coronation in 1953 and how she is now, nearly three-quarters of a century later.
Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne after the death of her father, King George VI, in February 1952. At the time, she was just 25. She was the new head of state of a country economically destroyed by six years of war, with food rationing still in place (it wouldn’t completely end until 1954). Her 70 years on the throne have seen countless changes, from rock ’n’ roll and rationing to ‘Love Island’ and the freak shake.
Rection to the takeover has been predictably mixed. On the one hand, Janet Wagstaff says simply: ‘Congratulations to 0ur wonderful Queen. xx’. Okay, so she’s used a zero rather than a capital O, which is unconventional, but it’s a nice sentiment.
Osvaldo Chiabrando is also positive but seems to have a slightly sinister undertone to his good wishes: ‘Brilliant behaviour of a person thru the years... eternal example... and... absolutely nothing will be the same... in her deep feelings she surely knows what Charles did... very... but very hard to hide with dignity... love and respect for her…’
Meanwhile, there’s a slightly more robust response from Russell Robertson, a Glaswegian NHS worker: ‘Pathetic homage to one of the richest women in the world.’ So there you go. Horses for courses.
Anyway, it’s better than a Coke ad, right?
Great things to do in London in February.
Love the West End? You’re in luck, it’s getting a huge cash injection.