Palace goes pop for the Jubilee

by Richard Ford

The Queen is considering opening the grounds of Buckingham Palace and other royal residences for free concerts as part of nationwide celebrations of her Golden Jubilee.

The Royal Household has suggested that the concerts reflect the music of the Queen's reign. Possible names include Dame Vera Lynn, Dame Shirley Bassey, Cilla Black, Sir Cliff Richard, Tommy Steele, Lonnie Donegan and the three surviving Beatles. A spokesman said the grounds of Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and Holyrood House would provide the ideal backdrop to public concerts.

The plan is to be matched by another innovation: there will be no GCSE or A-level examinations during Jubilee Week, which starts on June 3, 2002.

The Home Office said yesterday that Lord Levene of Portsoken would head a committee co-ordinating celebrations in London. The committee will ask religious and racial groups how they wanted to celebrate the Jubilee between May and August 2002.

The key event will be a thanksgiving service in St Paul's Cathedral on June 4, which will be a public holiday along with the previous day, giving a four-day holiday.