The Queen’s grandson Peter Phillips announced the ticket price and further details about the Patron’s Lunch event he is helping to organise – saying it would have a “carnival atmosphere”.
He said 10,000 guests – the vast majority representatives from the Queen’s patronages – would enjoy hampers of food at tables set up in the famous London thoroughfare.
A carnival parade will travel along the Mall entertaining the guests and the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will take to a stage to listen to speeches marking the occasion, before sitting in a royal box with the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry, joint presidents of the event, for part of the day.
Mr Phillips is helping to organise the event in his role as director of Sports and Entertainment Ltd (SEL), a global events agency which came up with the idea for The Mall street party.
Speaking about the cost, he stressed it was a not-for-profit event.
He added: “It’s not exactly a cheap exercise. Fortunately our corporate partners have provided the funding for the majority of the costs.”
Mr Phillips went on to say: “This is a not-for-profit event. SEL is being paid a set fee basically to take this from sign-off from the palace through to delivery of the event.”
The majority of the tickets have been allocated to the hundreds of organisations and charities associated with the Queen and they will be allowed to raise money with 40% of their tickets.
In February a ballot will open to the public for a minimum of 1,000 tickets, with winners able to buy them from the event’s website.
The Patron’s Lunch will honour the Queen’s lifetime dedication to service and mark her patronage of more than 600 charities and organisations.
Mr Phillips said the Queen heard about his plans to organise a street party during her 90th birthday weekend celebrations before he had a chance to tell her.
The Queen is known for her sharp sense of humour and her grandson said when he first approached her to tell her the idea – after formally pitching it to Buckingham Palace – she said: “I’ve heard you’re up to something.”
Mr Phillips said: “It’s a huge honour that I was allowed to do it.”
He added that his grandmother was fully supportive of his efforts: “Secondly there’s a huge amount of pride, the fact that I’m able to celebrate, to put something on, to put a celebration on which ultimately she appreciates, she enjoys and she thinks is a great idea.”
The Patron’s Lunch will be the culmination of a weekend of national events this summer marking the Queen’s official 90th birthday.
A service of thanksgiving attended by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will be held at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday June 10. The following day the traditional Trooping the Colour ceremony, also known as the Queen’s Birthday Parade, will be staged in Horse Guards Parade, and on the Sunday, the street party.
During the day the carnival parade will make two laps of a circuit around St James’s Park that includes the Mall.
Members of the public will also be able to share in the festivities at live sites in Green Park and St James’s Park.
Any surplus from the not-for-profit event will be allocated to a newly created Patron’s Fund, which will be used to support specific initiatives and projects run by the Queen’s charities.
The organisers also hope communities around the country will be inspired to stage Patron’s Lunches in their own areas and raise money for local projects.
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