Former H&F Mayor – Cllr PJ Murphy – pictured with the official H&F Queen's Green Canopy tree after it was awarded in March
A Jubilee message from Cllr Stephen Cowan, Leader of Hammersmith & Fulham:
Her Majesty The Queen’s long reign has witnessed more change than any other monarch in British history. When she ascended the throne on 6 February 1952, very few people had televisions at home. Today, the royal family has an Instagram account.
In 1953, L.P. Hartley wrote “The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there” in his novel The Go-Between. As we look back at that Britain at the start of The Queen’s reign, it is hard to even try to comprehend the changes.
Fourteen British Prime Ministers have come and gone – she has outlasted them all. Throughout these decades of change, The Queen has been the one constant, linking generations and representing a valuable and important bridge between the UK of the post-war era and the UK of today.
Duty has been the cornerstone of her 70 years as our head of state. The photograph of Her Majesty, seated alone in St George’s Chapel to mark the death of her husband last year, was the image that so perfectly expressed her lifelong commitment to always doing the right thing by our country. It also came to symbolise the sacrifices so many others made during the long, lonely and painful months of the pandemic lockdowns.
This year, The Queen will become the first British monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee. We will be marking this important moment in our history with a week of celebrations. H&F will be joining a nationwide Beacon Lighting ceremony, facilitating parties and picnics across the weekend and decking out the borough with bunting and flags. The full list of our local events is here.
Later this year, we will be part of The Queen’s Green Canopy; a project to create a long-lasting legacy in the shape of young, native trees planted across the borough.
Reasons to get together and celebrate have been few and far between in recent years. It is good that we can now come together to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee.
I know I speak on behalf of everyone in H&F in expressing our profound gratitude to Her Majesty The Queen and in wishing her continued good health in the years to come.
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