The Royal Wedding

I didn't get an invite to the Abbey so stayed at home and watched it on TV. However, I did go up to London on the day before the wedding to walk the route of the royal procession and sample the special atmosphere. An estimated 1,000,000 people watched the wedding from the streets of Westminster and a further 2,000,000,000 watched on television around the world. Here are my pictures.

1. Over 200 Union flags fly proudly in Regent Street (above).

2. A further view of the patriotic decorations in Regent Street (above).

3. A further view of Regent Street (above).

4. Union flags decorate the sweeping curve of Regent Street (above).

5. Buckingham Palace, the focal point of world attention on the day of Royal Wedding. The Queen set out to Westminster Abbey at 10.40 (above).

6. This pavilion had been constructed opposite Buckingham Palace to house the world's media (above).

7. A close-up of the journalists and television cameras in the pavilion (above).

8. The Queen and Kate Middleton, who departed from the Goring Hotel at 10.51, would have had this view of The Mall as they headed towards Westminster Abbey (above).

9. A view of Clarence House, where Prince William spent his last night as a single man.

10. Crowds gather at the gates of Clarence House. A few hours after this picture was taken Prince William came out and spoke to the crowds (above).

11. A television camera in The Mall.

12. This camera tower was constructed outside the Royal Society.

13. A close-up of the cameraman preparing for action in The Mall (above).

14. People camping in The Mall so as to get th best possible view of the wedding procession (above).

15. The world's media seemed to congregate around the Duke of York's Column at the end of The Mall (above).

16. Lights, cameras and journalists preparing for action at the end of The Mall (above).

17. Lights, cameras and journalists preparing for action at the end of The Mall (above).

18. The television cameras would have filmed the procession as it turned from The Mall towards Horseguards Parade on its way to Westminster Abbey. They would have then filmed the carriages returning to Buckingham Palace after the wedding (above).

19. The television cameras would have filmed the procession as it turned from The Mall towards Horseguards Parade on its way to Westminster Abbey. They would have then filmed the carriages returning to Buckingham Palace after the wedding (above).

20. News vans from the world's media companies parked at the end of The Mall (above).

21. This NBC News van in The Mall indicates the global appeal of the wedding. There was a huge television audience in America (above).

22. The royals would have had this view of Admiralty Arch as they headed down The Mall towards Westminster Abbey. However, they would have turned right before reaching the arch and crossed Horseguards Parade (above).

23. Kate Middleton would have had this view of the Admiraltyon her way to and from the Abbey (above).

24. This would have been the royals' first view of Horseguards Parade as they headed towards Westminster Abbey (above).

25. The royal procession would have crossed Horseguards Parade on their way to and from the Abbey (above).

26. AS they crossed Horseguards Parade, th royals would have seen the reat and back garden of 10 Downing Street (above). However, the Prime Minister was not there as he was already a guest in the Abbey. Former Prime Ministers John Major and Margaret Thatcher were invited although the Iron Lady had to decline because of ill health. Tony Blair and Gordon Brown were not invited (above).

27. The trickiest part of the procession was getting the carriages through the arch of Horseguards Parade. However, the horses were expertly handled by the guards (above) and all passed through smoothly (above).

28. This is a view of the narrow arch of Horseguards Parade as it apears from the Whitehall side. The royals would have seen this as they were taken back to the Palace (above).

29. A Horseguard on duty in Whitehall. It was at this point on the return journey that a horse unseated its rider and headed off down Whitehall! However, it was soon recovered (above).

30. The royals would have had this view towards Nelson's Column and Trafalgar Square and they headed down Whitehall on their return to Buckingham Palace (above).

31. The royals would have had this view of Whitehall as they headed towards Wesminster Abbey. The Victoria Tower of the Houses of Parliament can be seen in the distance (above).

32. Souvenier sellers were making a fortune (above). It cost £8 ($13 USD) for a mug with Kate and Wills on it!

33. The royal procession would have passed the gated entrance of 10 Downing Street as it headed down Whitehall. Although security was heavy a street party was held in 10 Downing Street later in the day (above).

34. The most solemn of the many Union flags flying on day was that on the cenotaph in Whitehall (above).

35. As the royal cars reached Parliament Square, the Prince and bride-to-be would have had this view of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament (above).

36. A band of Royal Marines entertained the crowd in front of Big Ben (above).

37. As Kate Middleton crossed Parliament Square on the way to her wedding she would have had her first view of Westminster Abbey (above).

38. The protestors had been moved from Parliament Square and it had been decorated with Union flags (above).

39. The procession would have passed in front of Sir Winston Churchill on its way to the Abbey. He was a relative of Diana Spencer and therefore Prince William (above).

40. Kate Middleton would have seen these flags on her way to the Abbey and was probably feeling quite nervous at this point (above).

41. Bookmakers offered odds on all kinds of bets.  I didn't put any money on it but I thought that the Queen would wear green. Actually she wore yellow (above).

42. Outisde the Abbey there were celevritites everywhere. I couldn't tell you who these ladies were but they were drawing a big crowd of interested on-lookers (above).

43. People of all ages were camping outside Westminster Abbey to get the best view of the procession (above).

44. Many of the guests would have entered the Abbey through its north side (above).

45. Kate Middleton would have entered the Abbey through its famous West Door (above). The crowds here were phenomenal and it took me twenty minutes to walk two paces!

46. A media city had been set up opposite the west door of Westminster Abbey (above).

47. A close-up of the massed bank of television cameras opposite the west door of Westminster Abbey (above).

48.A close-up of the massed bank of television cameras opposite the west door of Westminster Abbey (ab ove).

49. News anchors came from nearly every country in the world including these ones from China (above).

50. After the wedding, the carriages headed back to Buckingham Palace on the other side of Parliament Square. They would have passed in front of this statue of Abraham Lincoln (above).

51. The royal party would have had this view of Big Ben as they headed back towards Whitehall.

52.  The royal party would have had this view of The Mall as they returned to Buckingham Palace, which can be seen at the end (above).

53. A huge crowd waited for the newly weds when they arrived back at the palace after the ceremony (above).

54. Many people who had watched the procession in Horseguards Parade or Whitehall would have crossed St James's Park (above) in order to get to The Mall, from where they could have seen the newly-weds appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.  There is a fine view of the Palace from the lake in the park.

55. People were camping opposite the Palace in order to get the best view of the newly wed royals appearing on the balcony (above).

56. A view of the front of Buckingham Palace (above).

57. A close-up of the balcony on which the new Duke of Cambridge kissed his bride twice at 13:27 on 29th April.  They also watched the RAF fly-past from here.