The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Top Events

Celebrate 60 years of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign with an array of spectacular royal events happening over the Diamond Jubilee weekend in June 2012 and throughout the rest of the year. Here are some of the highlights.

Epsom Derby , Epsom Downs, Surrey

Join The Queen as she kicks off the Jubilee celebrations with a day out at the races. A royal tradition that has seen Elizabeth II attend the annual racing day since a young girl, Her Majesty will take to Royal Box for the Epsom Derby to cheer on her horse; Carlton House.
Date: 2 June 2012

The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant , London

Perch by the riverside to witness an elaborate royal procession harking back to the golden age. On the afternoon of Sunday 3 June, around a thousand boats will take to the River Thames as Her Majesty The Queen leads the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant. The floating celebration will be the largest flotilla ever assembled on the river, with boats of all shapes and sizes draped with decorations and their crew and passengers dressed up in their finest attire.
Date: 3 June 2012

Royal River: Power, Pageantry and the Thames , National Maritime Museum, London

This spectacular exhibition brings together nearly 400 beautiful, fascinating and often unique objects, including one of the largest-ever loans of Royal Collection objects to any museum. Created to mark Her Majesty The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and guest-curated by historian David Starkey, it presents the historic Thames in all its glory, from British royal and City events to London’s famous watermen, and the river’s transformation after the notorious ‘Great Stink’.
Date: 27 April -  9 September 2012

The Queen: Sixty Photographs for Sixty Years , The Drawings Gallery, Windsor Castle

The Queen is one of the most photographed figures in modern history and now, thanks to the Diamond Jubilee, you can see the 66th monarch depicted throughout six decades at the Drawings Gallery in Windsor Castle. Altogether there’ll be sixty photographs of The Queen on display, many taken by leading press photographers and showing world- famous images along with more relaxed moments that will provide you with a deeper insight into the Queen’s enigmatic character.
Date: 4 February 2012 – January 2013

Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration , Buckingham Palace, London

Learn more about the royals’ binding relationship with the most precious stone in the world. During the summer opening of Buckingham Palace, a dazzling exhibition will show the many different ways diamonds have been used by the royal family over the last 200 years. The exhibition will also feature a rare opportunity to see a treasure trove of majestic jewels belonging to The Queen, both personal and those inherited during her reign.
Date: 1 August – 30 September 2012

Cecil Beaton’s Royal Portraits : A Diamond Jubilee Celebration, Victoria and Albert Museum, London

From the highly formal captures of The Queen’s coronation in 1953 to more intimate moments like the portrait of Princess Elizabeth with the newly-born Princess Anne; the V&A Museum will host an exhibition of the famous works by royal photographer Cecil Beaton (1904-1980). Images on display include The Queen and the royal family in the comfort of their homes and on official state occasions with other iconic figures.
Date: 8 February – 22 April 2012

Katherine Parr Quincentenary Festival , Sudeley Castle, The Cotswolds

Celebrate the reign of one great queen by celebrating the life of another at the Queen Katherine Parr Quincentenary Festival, held in Sudeley Castle. The last of Henry VIII’s six wives, when the infamous king died, Katherine moved to Sudeley Castle after marrying Lord Seymour of Sudeley and is buried in St Mary’s Church. The festival includes an exhibition that reveals more about the young queen, featuring items from the castle’s own collection, as well as several other pieces on loan from historic collections. There’ll also be the chance to see parts of the castle not normally open to the public as well as a Champagne Reception with Historian Dr David Starkey.
Date: to be confirmed

The Queen: Art & Image , National Portrait Gallery, London

The National Portrait Gallery will hold a celebratory exhibition bringing together 60 of the most resonant images of Elizabeth II, some of which have never been seen in public. The works span her six decade reign and will be shown off in various locations around Britain before landing in London at the National Portrait Gallery. With the likes of Beaton, Annigoni, Leibovitz and even Andy Warhol beaming from the walls, The Queen: Art and Image will be an eclectic exhibition that presents a world-famous figure in a variety of different forms, from painted portraits to media photography.
Date: 17 May – 21 October 2012