Queen Elizabeth's 90th birthday
Baku, June 11 AZERTAC
The Queen will have a chance to re-live one of the highlights of her Diamond Jubilee year when a flotilla of boats processes town the Thames on Saturday as part of the three-day weekend of official 90th birthday celebrations.
The Royal Rowbarge Gloriana, the star of the river pageant in 2012, will lead 50 vessels, including Dunkirk “Little Ships”, from Pa rliament to Tower Bridge as the Queen appears on the balcony of Buckingham Palace following Trooping the Colour.
"My own nephew did the Duke of Edinburgh Awards - it gives people a focus, they realise 'there's something I can do' and it's thrilling."
Sir Roger, who played Bond between 1973 and 1985, said he has supported the charity for a number of years and added: "Everybody in the film business both on screen and theatre is called upon to support various charities - every cause is good.
The Queen and the Duke will be joined by the rest of the Royal family at Friday’s Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s, where readers will include Sir David Attenborough, who is the same age as the Queen. It will be followed by a lunch for the Governors General of all Commonwealth Realms at Buckingham Palace.
The former Olympian Sir Steve Redgrave will be among those rowing Gloriana upstream, to Parliament where it will “toss oars” to salute the Palace of Westminster and join other vessels for the journey back downstream.
Carol Marlow, one of the Gloriana team, said: “The Queen wanted Gloriana to be seen on the Thames as much as possible to encourage people to row on the river and young people to enjoy the river in every way. So on the weekend of her official birthday, that’s what we’re doing. It should be a spectacular event.”
The Queen and the Duke will be hoping for better weather this time around, as torrential rain marred their time on board Gloriana in the procession four years ago - which featured 1,000 boats - and the Duke fell ill soon afterwards with a bladder infection.
Its organiser, the Queen’s grandson Peter Phillips, is praying for good weather, but forecasters have said there is a strong chance of rain.
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