A Right Royal Celebration at The Pantiles
10th May 2023
10th May 2023
On Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th May, over 12,000 visitors enjoyed a right royal celebration at The Pantiles! This was to commemorate the King’s Coronation at Westminster Abbey.
The Coronation of His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen took place at Westminster Abbey on Saturday 6th May 2023, the service being conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The service reflected the Monarch’s role today and looked toward the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.
Their Majesties arrived at Westminster Abbey in procession from Buckingham Palace, known as ‘The King’s Procession’. After the service, their Majesties returned to Buckingham Palace in a larger ceremonial procession, known as ‘The Coronation Procession’, joined by other members of the Royal Family.
At Buckingham Palace, The King and Queen, accompanied by members of the Royal Family, appeared on the balcony to conclude the day’s ceremonial events.
The Coronation weekend provided many opportunities for people to come together in celebration of the historic occasion.
Royal Tunbridge Wells is proud to be one of only four towns in the United Kingdom to have been granted the ‘Royal’ prefix. To celebrate the Coronation the town was a wash of red, white and blue. Whilst there was rain on the Saturday, even the British weather couldn’t dampen spirits!
A large screen was erected on The Pantiles’ iconic bandstand televising the Coronation, giving attendees the chance to enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime moment with the local community.
There were also a variety of activities for children at The Pantiles, including a free craft workshop to design and decorate crowns and tiaras. The event was a huge success, seeing many pint-sized kings and queens being crowned! Little ones could then pose for a sovereign selfie on The Pantiles’ throne, protected by two of the King’s guards.
A selection of these selfies can be viewed on The Pantiles’ Facebook page.
Approximately 400 years ago, in the early 1600s, The Chalybeate Spring in the heart of The Pantiles was discovered by Lord North. This later led to the Queen of England enjoying the waters – quickly followed by finding herself pregnant with Charles II! King Charles II, King James I, Catherine of Braganza, Queen Anne and Queen Victoria all visited The Chalybeate Spring – leading to King Edward VII granting Tunbridge Wells its Royal title in 1909 to commemorate its long-standing royal connection.
In correlation with the King’s Coronation, a new brand of spring water has been introduced – Royal TW Spring Water. The launch took place at The Pantiles in front of The Chalybeate Spring on Coronation Day, amongst the other celebratory activities.
This new brand of spring water allows everyone to enjoy and reap the benefits from this mineral-rich water with exceptional properties. Available to buy in glass bottles, Royal TW Spring Water includes natural, sparkling and botanically-infused varieties.
To find out more about TW Spring Water, visit: royaltwwater.com
Beumee at The Pantiles were honoured and proud to host a public exhibition of “The Royal Procession” sculpture. This was revealed at the historic Pantiles Coronation celebrations. The sculpture was commissioned to be given to their Majesties the King and Queen for the Coronation.
This historically significant bold work of art offered the public an exceptionally rare opportunity to view the current only other existing sculpture of “The Royal Procession” in the world. The Sculpture expertly captures the unique association of the Royal Family with Royal Ascot, namely The Royal Possession, pulled by four Royal Greys as it turns into the parade ring.
This work was created by Tessa Campbell FRBS and Judy Boyt MA FRBS and Judy Boyt MA FRBS.
All proceeds raised from visitors seeing the sculpture went to the Princes Foundation charity.
Produced, staged and broadcast live by the BBC and BBC Studios, a Coronation Concert was aired on the evening of Sunday 7th May. This concert was televised on the big screen situated on The Pantiles’ iconic bandstand.
The concert saw a world-class orchestra play interpretations of musical favourites fronted by some of the world’s biggest entertainers, alongside performers from the world of dance. Icons of stage and screen included Katy Perry, Take That, Lionel Ritchie and even Miss Piggy!
Alongside the stars of the concert, the show also saw an exclusive appearance from The Coronation Choir. This diverse group was created from the nation’s keenest community choirs and amateur singers from across the United Kingdom, such as Refugee choirs, NHS choirs, LGBTQ+ singing groups and deaf signing choirs.
The centrepiece of the Coronation Concert, ‘Lighting up the Nation’, saw the country join together in celebration as iconic locations across the United Kingdom were lit up using projections, lasers, drone displays and illuminations.
Thank you to everyone who attended the events at The Pantiles and wider Tunbridge Wells area, and we wish the best of luck, health and happiness to the new King and Queen!