Being in the coronation crowd was emotional, historic and ‘a bit wet’ | UK News

There isn’t a single way the 6th of May could have been more British if he had tried.

On the day Charles was crowned King, London was awash with Union Jack flags, the sky was iconic grey, everything was a little wet and absolutely everyone was talking about it being “a little wet”.

Not to mention that the whole day revolved around queuing.

The Mall closed at 8.30am, so thousands were headed towards Hyde Park, where they huddled under umbrellas and raincoats to watch the ceremony on the big screen.

Most people who hadn’t camped at the Mall in more than a week spent most of the day walking from one lookout to the other.

But that’s what it was all about – apart from the country inaugurating its new head of state and stuff.

In all the waiting, the families began chatting to one another, randomly bursting into choruses of “God save the King” and “Three Cheers for the King,” which was (always) answered with “Hip Hip Hooray.”

Strangers were forced so close together they might as well cuddle – but that’s not a very British description.

In the interests of accurate reporting, we would not mention that there were a “sorry, can’t see” or two from people who had decided to travel to central London on one of the busiest days of the year and then got angry, that there was a crowd.

But that was certainly the minority and can be excused by the fact that it was definitely more than “a bit wet”. Metro.co.uk can report that it was only wet.

Keeping a group earned them a special mention – Heidi Porter and her Pomeranian Coco and Peanut.

Heidi, from Epsom, wore boots with sequined Union Jack flags topped with prints of Big Ben and Tower Bridge.

Just in case the shoes didn’t make it clear we were in the UK, she also pushed a pram covered in Union Jack pennants.

The stroller, a silver cross made by Balmoral, was used to transport Coco and Peanut, who were wearing red and blue sweaters for the day, which Peanut was clearly looking forward to.

The next person we met on our travels was “Piper James”, the only visitor who dared to say the word “Diana”.

Kitted out in a kilt and cape with the words “Diana” written on the back, Piper James tells us he wishes people would do a bit of commemoration for the People’s Princess as he “whistled for her” even in his army days.

When we parted, he played a parting tune on his bagpipes that sounded suspiciously like Coronation Street outro music.

When we finally reached the mall, which took much longer than necessary because nobody knew where we had to go (including the ushers), we saw parents rushing to find the best and driest place they could find for their children could.

But it was the kids who called the shots here, many dressed up as fairytale kings and queens and looking undeniably adorable.

But suddenly everyone seemed to go quiet, leaving their once prized umbrellas to look up.

The red arrows had filled the once-gray sky with blue, red, and white smoke—a welcome change from the gloomy skyline that didn’t show an ounce of light all day.

Once the colored smoke had cleared, the majority of the crowd collectively opted to take shelter in Piccadilly Station, as we all agree we hadn’t spent enough time crashing into each other beforehand.

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