Coronation close-up

Stunning exhibition takes you to the heart of the big day.

Britain has been celebrating the 1953 Coronation this year, and now you can get a close-up look at the people and items right at the heart of it.

Those monumental events six decades ago are now part of our history, and few dreamed our new Queen would still be on the throne today, with a flawless 60 years behind her.

But it was also a time of great pageantry not to say huge excitement for her young children, Charles and Anne and a stunning exhibition is about to let us all enjoy it.

The Queen’s Coronation 1953 is a fantastic show, part of The Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace, and will be on view between July 27 and September 29, so you have plenty time to see it.

Photographs from the amazing Royal Collection Trust show the event, which grabbed headlines from Tottenham to Timbuktu, from fresh angles.

We see the lady herself in all her Coronation finery, photographed by the brilliant Cecil Beaton, painted by others.

We see the brand-new Royal Family waving to the crowds from the Buckingham Palace Balcony, looking a tad nervous about what they’ve just got themselves into!

We get to see a giggling Charles and Anne, who had a shock of very blonde curls as a toddler while Charles looks uncannily like William when he was a boy.

But in some ways, it’s articles, rather than humans, who will make this exhibition so special, whether you adore the Royals or merely have a passing interest in them and British history.

The Bible on which the new Queen swore her oath, the gorgeous, priceless pen she used, and that wonderful Gold State Coach, already 191 years old when the Coronation took place.

To stand next to artefacts like this will no doubt guarantee that London will have even more foreign visitors than normal this year. However, for Brits whether you were there in ’53 or hadn’t even been born yet these items make it unmissable.

A cute Official Invitation for Charles to attend is another stand-out. Our future King wasn’t five yet, so we’re assuming it was his rather famous Mum who signed his acceptance letter!

If you think today’s young ladies Royal and ordinary love their “bling”, bedecking themselves in as much shiny jewellery as possible, then take them along to see the Diamond Diadem.

We guarantee she’ll be goggle-eyed at this sensational-looking piece of headwear, which is definitely more stylish than flashy.

Made of 1,333 diamonds, pearls, silver and gold, it was created for the extravagant and stylish George IV in 1820 for his own Coronation the following year, and has been worn by various royal ladies over the years.

It cost him £8,216, which would be much dearer now, even before you take into account its history, which puts it firmly into the “priceless” bracket. If it ever goes on sale, which it won’t, even oil sheiks will sweat over the price!

Incorporating the national emblems of England, Scotland and Ireland, it has appeared on postage stamps and coins it’s hard to imagine, but George wore it over a velvet Spanish hat!

It once featured a diamond-studded loop, but Queen Victoria had that taken off, broken up and made into a Garter armlet. The Queen wears it today, when she travels to and from the State Opening of Parliament, and even the most hardened of politicians must find the headgear hugely impressive.

Her mode of transport wasn’t too shoddy, either, of course.

When you get a bird’s-eye view of that fabulous Gold State Coach, you’ll get a real sense of how awe-inspiring that day in 1953 was.

It’s revealing, to see ordinary members of the public and on-leave soldiers and sailors holding small cameras above their heads, just as they do today with their mobile phones. No wonder seeing the coach pass must have been breathtaking.

Commissioned by Francis Hastings, the King’s Master of the Horse, it took two years to be ready for George III’s Coronation and wedding to Princes Charlotte.

He first used it when he travelled to open Parliament, and it’s been used at every Coronation since George IV’s.

Made of gilded wood, it takes eight horses to pull it and was made by Samuel Butler, the best coachmaker of his time. You’ll love the beautiful carved sculptures and painted panels, three cherubs on the roof for England, Scotland and Ireland, and four tritons to represent Britain’s Imperial strength.

Triton, by the way, is the mythological God of Greece, son of Poseidon, and definitely better to look at than the usual London Taxi advertisements in more down to earth London transport!

With leather and gilt, velvet and satin inside, it would have been no ordinary ride, as Elizabeth was transported to her destiny.

And 60 years later, don’t miss a chance to see it all for yourself.

l For all the info you need and to book tickets, see www.rceltickets.com/profile.asp or www.royalcollection.org.uk and you can phone 0207 7667 300.