Alice Temperley kicks off West End's Queen's 90th celebrations
Flying the flag: Alice Temperley
British fashion designer Alice Temperley kicked off celebrations across the London’s West End today by toasting HM The Queen's 90th Birthday with a cup of tea ahead of her official birthday celebrations in nine days' time.
Temperley, who has a store on Bruton Street, the same street where the Queen was born in 1926 (the spot is marked with a blue plaque), said the West End "showcases the best of British and is a unique destination that offers everything great about Britain to visitors from the UK and across the globe".
Temperley on Bruton Street
The West End is leading the Capital’s birthday celebrations with the launch of a Guide "90 West End Ways to Celebrate HM The Queen’s 90th". West End areas driving the campaign include Oxford Street, Bond Street, Piccadilly, Carnaby Street, Seven Dials, Chinatown, Mount Street and Duke Street.
The guide outlines things to do, see, buy and experience throughout The Queen’s 90th year. Businesses across the West End from retailers, restaurants, theatres and hotels are expecting £1bn to be spent over the summer, with visitors travelling to the capital from inside the UK and abroad.
90 West End Ways... Guide
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Over Her Majesty’s lifetime, the area in which she was born has evolved into one of the most exciting places to be on the planet. London’s vibrant West End is a vital contributor to the capital’s economy, creating jobs and attracting tourists from around the world. I’m confident this historic occasion will see even more people visit London and enjoy everything this great city has to offer.”
Jace Tyrrell, CEO of the New West End Company, which represents the business interests of 25 streets in the West End including Bond Street, Regent Street and Oxford Street, said: “The West End is one of the UK’s greatest tourism assets attracting visitors from all corners of the country each year. As the birthplace of HM The Queen, we are proud to be playing our part in celebrating this historic moment. Union Flags can be seen flying high across the West End to mark this momentous occasion in British history, for all to enjoy and experience.”
The "90 West End Ways..." guide's editor Andy Hill reveals his Top 5 listings
1. Fortnum and Mason: Everything the 300-plus year old Piccadilly stalwart does is so regal and classy anyway. And as it’s the Queen’s actual grocer you know you’ll get the royal treatment.
“A royal grocer for more than 150 years, Fortnum & Mason is pulling out all the stops for Her Majesty’s 90th, with a window display [which was in place during the official celebrations in April], and an array of regal products, including fine bone china crockery, beautiful commemorative tea towels and special loose tea blends."
181 Piccadilly, W1A 1ER. www.fortnumandmason.com
2. Mural of the Queen at St Christopher’s Place: In other countries, great looming portraits of the head of state are a wee bit creepy and Orwellian. Not in this case. It’s like turning a corner and seeing a lovely picture of your gran splashed across the brickwork.
Frederick Wimsett's mural
"Grab a snap of yourself with the birthday girl at St Christopher’s Place, one of the first London villages, and a truly British destination for shops, boutiques, restaurants and bars. Renowned artist and interior designer Frederick Wimsett spent 150 hours painting a striking chinoiserie-inspired mural of the Queen, which will remain in place until 23 October before being auctioned to raise proceeds for Great Ormond Street Hospital. Share your best shot using the #QueenofSCP on Instagram or Twitter and be automatically entered into a competition to win a night at a St Christopher’s Place apartment, a £200 personal styling experience at Jigsaw, a pamper treatment at Groom Beauty Townhouse and dinner at Côte Brasserie. It may as well be your birthday…"
Free. Barrett St, W1. www.stchristophersplace.com
Throughout 2016
3. De Beers It’s hard to separate the Queen from her royal bling. The Piccadilly diamond specialist is again bringing out the Talisman Crown, commissioned for the 2012 Olympics, for us mortals to gawp at and wonder.
"The high-end jeweller is bringing back its magnificent Talisman Crown, a sumptuous one-of-a-kind piece created in 2012 for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. A magnificent combination of luxury materials and sublime craftsmanship, it has to be seen to be believed."
Prices vary. 46-50 Old Bond Street, W1S 4QT. www.debeers.co.uk
Throughout 2016
4. Picturehouse Presents: The Audience: The Picturehouse screening of the Helen Mirren play invites us to ponder the wisdom, the subtlety and the tantalisingly opaque (yet surely undeniable) influence Her Majesty has had on politics through her weekly meetings with Prime Ministers going as far back as Winston Churchill.
"An encore screening of the multi award-winning play, starring Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II at her weekly meeting with various Prime Ministers throughout her reign. The screening will be followed by a special recorded Q&A with Helen Mirren and director Stephan Daldry."
£20 for adults, £8 for children. Corner of Windmill St and Shaftesbury Av, W1D 7DH. www.picturehouses.com
9th June 2016, 7.30pm
5. Cahoots: The subterranean watering hole win "best pun" for their "Windsor is Coming" cocktail. Even better: it’s served in a Coronation mug
“This retro Underground-themed bar is holding a Right Royal Squiffy Picnic to celebrate, with a menu of British classics like Eton Mess and teacakes, live entertainment and (amazingly) a bespoke cocktail called 'Windsor is Coming’: Bombay Sapphire, raspberry and apple shrub, pumpkin, ginger and lemongrass, served in a coronation mug. Don’t forget to raise your pinkie!"
From £46 pp. 13 Kingly Court, W1B 5PW. www.cahoots-london.com
11th June 2016. Two sittings, 12pm and 2pm
