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The first big day of Platinum Jubilee celebrations will end on Thursday evening with the lighting of thousands of beacons across both the UK and the Commonwealth.
The evening ceremonies will also mark the first major event of the four day bank holiday weekend that communities can join in with. Scroll down for the full list of beacon ceremonies in Kent.
Thursday is a day of pomp and pageantry with the Queen’s birthday parade and Trooping The Colour in central London followed by the RAF fly-past at 1pm and a much-anticipated appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony by some members of the Royal Family and possibly The Queen herself.
But it is the lighting of Jubilee beacons on Thursday night that is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people to local village greens, community spaces and town centre recreation grounds.
More than 1,500 beacons are expected to be lit in the UK meaning that there is sure to be a ceremony happening near you.
Organisers will light a mixture of gas fuelled beacons, braziers or even construct bonfire beacons at other local focal points.
Committees were given the choice this year of either purchasing a new beacon kit designed specifically for the Platinum Jubilee or bringing back to life a beacon or brazier that may have been constructed for a previous national celebration.
All beacons will be lit at the same time – 9.45pm – while a principle beacon is also expected to be set alight during an official ceremony at Buckingham Palace to end the first day of national events.
Here’s where the Platinum Jubilee beacons are being lit in Kent:
Faith leaders say the simultaneous lighting of beacons across the Commonwealth will be a powerful symbol of celebration.
Archbishop Justin Welby is encouraging people to sing the “Song for the Commonwealth” as the beacons are lit to celebrate the monarch’s 70-year reign. He said: “This will be a moment of remarkable celebration, as we join together across different generations, denominations, faiths and communities all over the world in proper tribute to Her Majesty the Queen.
“My prayer is that this might be a chance to truly celebrate Her Majesty’s historic 70 years of service to her country and the Commonwealth, reaching out in friendship, and building community as we are reminded of our common bond under the Crown.”
His words have been echoed by Chief Rabbi Mirvis, Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth, who said: “The kindling of the Queen’s Jubilee Beacons throughout the United Kingdom and the capital cities of the Commonwealth will be a most powerful symbol as we celebrate Her Majesty’s 70 remarkable years on the throne.
“In Jewish tradition, the lighting of a flame accompanies many of our most important religious observances, representing the point at which the material and sacred meet.
“The fragile flame conveys the profound lesson that spirituality cannot manifest in the world if we do not cultivate and protect it.”
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