A million rose petals fluttered down from the sky, 100 white doves flew above. Camels, royal corgis and a fly past by the Red Arrows trailing red, white and blue smoke were the order of the day as the 100th birthday pageant for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother erupted in colour and music from the past on Horse Guards Parade.
It was a day for smiles and celebration and in the brilliant sunshine of a July afternoon. Not even the threat of a terrorist bomb, discovered earlier in the day in west London, could dampen the queen mother's spirits or those of the 8,000 who paraded down the Mall past the queen mother, dressed in pink chiffon, and members of the British royal family. Defying her age, the queen mother stood and waved through most of the hour-long pageant as first the Household Cavalry and members of the queen mother's regimental groups, including troops from Australia and New Zealand, marched past to the sound of Elgar's Crown Imperial. The RUC Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, also took part in the parade. Sir Ronnie joined 24 holders of the Victoria Cross and the George Cross as they filed past the queen mother in open-topped Rolls Royces.
One of the highlights was the cavalcade of a royal century, featuring more than 600 children marking key events of the past 100 years and recalling the queen mother's favourite moments during her life. Ballroom dancers, a keen royal past-time, swept through Horse Guards Parade followed by children dressed in costumes from the past 10 decades. There were cast members from some of the queen mother's favourite programmes, including the second World War-inspired classic, Dad's Army, and even her corgis, Rush and Minnie, took a little walk past the royal dais.
As early as 11 a.m., men, women and children made their way to the Mall to secure places behind security barriers to watch the march past. Sons sat on fathers' shoulders, looking over the heads of thousands of tourists and people who had travelled from Scotland, Wales and Ireland to enjoy the pageant.
"It's absolutely wonderful to be here and see this fantastic tribute to the queen mother," said Amanda, on holiday in London from New York. "It took us a few hours to get across the city centre because of the bomb, but we were determined not to miss it."
And what was her favourite part so far? "Oh, I think the music and the colour is wonderful, it's putting a smile on everyone's face."
And after the entire pageant sang a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday, the rose petals fluttered down. As her last gift of the day the queen mother received a giant birthday card, signed by the 8,000 pageant participants.
Clearly moved by the spectacle, the queen mother, the only member of the British royal family to reach her 100th year, spoke briefly to thank everyone who had taken part. "It's been a great joy", she said. "It's been a wonderful evening, God bless you all and thank you." And the national anthem was sung with great affection and vigour.
A narrow majority of Britons believe Prince Charles should step aside and allow his eldest son William to become the next king, according to an NOP opinion poll for the Daily Express.
The poll showed Prince Charles is the least admired member of the British royal family, while his sister, Princess Anne, is the most popular.
Prince William (18) is the second most popular royal, and 42 per cent of those polled believed he should become the next king compared with 41 per cent who backed his father.
The poll showed strong support for Queen Elizabeth (74), voted the third most popular royal. Three-quarters of respondents said she is doing a good job and should not abdicate in favour of Prince Charles.