Warwickshire’s Lord Lieutenant is encouraging local communities to get involved in a very special event.
Warwickshire’s Lord Lieutenant is encouraging local communities, groups, authorities, organisations, businesses and more, to begin registering to take part in a very special event to celebrate The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
2 June 2022 marks Her Majesty The Queen’s 70th year as Monarch and Head of the Commonwealth - an achievement no previous monarch has reached. To celebrate this extraordinary milestone a national lighting of the beacons event is being planned.
More than 1,500 beacons will be lit throughout the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and UK Overseas Territories, and one in each of the capital cities of Commonwealth countries in recognition of The Queen’s long and selfless service. The beacons will enable local communities, individuals and organisations to pay tribute to Her Majesty The Queen as part of the official Platinum Jubilee Weekend of celebrations from the 2 to 5 June 2022.
There are three types of beacons being lit for this historic occasion:
- A free-standing beacon fuelled by bottle gas.
- A beacon brazier with a metal shield (example pictured). This could be built by local craftsmen/women or adopted as a project by a local organisation.
- A bonfire beacon.
Communities with existing beacon braziers are also encouraged to light these on the night.
A wide range of organisations across the UK have already confirmed participation, including: the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS); National Farmers’ Union (NFU); Forces charity Walking with the Wounded; English Heritage; Army Cadets; Girlguiding; and Battel Bonfire Boyes, the world’s oldest bonfire society.
Cllr Heather Timms, Portfolio Holder for Environment, Climate & Culture, said:
“We are delighted to be supporting the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Beacons in Warwickshire, and we will be encouraging local communities throughout the county to safely light beacons as part of the celebration in 2022.
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee will be a really special moment in our history, and so we encourage people to begin registering to get involved and be a part of this incredible occasion that we will look back on both now and in future generations.”
Mr. Tim Cox, Warwickshire’s Lord Lieutenant, said:
“This is likely to be the last chain of beacons lit on this scale during The Queen’s 70-year reign, and the Warwickshire Lieutenancy are encouraging as many local organisations, community groups, businesses and individuals as possible to participate in this special tribute to Her Majesty on the 2 June 2022.
With just a few months left of 2021, now is a great time to start spreading the word and begin registering interest to get involved in this special event.
Let’s work towards making this the largest celebration of its kind that Warwickshire has ever seen.”
Opportunities to get involved also extend beyond the lighting of the beacons:
- Town criers are being invited to undertake the Proclamation at 1pm BST to announce the lighting of the beacons later that evening.
- Individual pipers and pipe bands are being asked to play “Diu Regnare” from central locations of their choice at 9:09pm BST from within their local communities as their personal tribute to Her Majesty The Queen.
- Choirs in local communities are encouraged to sing a specially written song to coincide with the lighting of the beacons. A competition for Commonwealth writers, composers, and choirs to create the song is currently underway by The Commonwealth Resounds. For more information visit www.commonwealthresounds.com/
Previously the beacons have been lit to commemorate the Silver (1977), Golden (2002) and Diamond (2012) Jubilees of Her Majesty The Queen, and in 2016 for her 90th birthday.
Get Involved
For more information on how to get involved please contact the Warwickshire Lieutenancy at lieutenancy@warwickshire.gov.uk
To officially register and confirm your involvement in The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Beacons, please provide the following information directly to Bruno Peek LVO OBE OPR, Pageantmaster, The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Beacons at brunopeek@mac.com:
- Name and job title of the main contact/coordinator, council, organisation, piper, town crier, or choir.
- Postal address including county and postcode
- Name of capital city (for Commonwealth countries only)
- Country (England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, UK Overseas Territory)
- Commonwealth Country
- Landline telephone number and mobile number
- Email address
- Beacon location (if known when registering, please include the postcode)
- Confirm if lighting your beacon will be a public or private event
For more information about The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Beacons event in 2022, visit www.queensjubileebeacons.com/