LONDON: Britain's Queen Elizabeth II has thanked the nation and the Commonwealth for the goodwill and celebrations planned over the course of four days, starting on Thursday to mark the Platinum Jubilee of her reign.
The 96-year-old monarch acceded to the British throne aged 25 in February 1952 and that 70-year milestone is being celebrated with a long Bank Holiday weekend, packed with street parties and pageantry across the UK.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said its high commission and embassy staff across the world will also be celebrating the occasion with special events.
"Thank you to everyone who has been involved in convening communities, families, neighbours and friends to mark my Platinum Jubilee, in the United Kingdom and across the Commonwealth," the Queen said in her message for the Jubilee.
"I know that many happy memories will be created at these festive occasions. I continue to be inspired by the goodwill shown to me, and hope that the coming days will provide an opportunity to reflect on all that has been achieved during the last seventy years, as we look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm," she said.
On Thursday, the festivities kick off with a military-led Trooping the Colour ceremony, dubbed the Queen's Birthday Parade, followed by the monarch joining other senior royals for the traditional balcony appearance from Buckingham Palace to wave to the parade and gathered crowds.
A Royal Air Force (RAF) flypast and the lighting of 3,000 beacons outside the palace and light displays on iconic buildings such as the FCDO near Downing Street will conclude the day.
"Her Majesty the Queen is the very embodiment of the best of Britain and no monarch has ever served our country for as long, or so well," said UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.
"In an ever changing and uncertain world, the Queen has been a rock who has offered wise counsel to over 170 Heads of State and dedicated her life to promoting unity and social freedom. Her remarkable service to the UK and the Commonwealth is rightly being recognised across the globe, during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, as she continues to touch the lives of millions of people beyond our shores," she said.
A new Platinum Jubilee portrait has also been unveiled, showing the Queen at Windsor Castle wearing a dusk dove blue Angela Kelly coat. The image was taken by photographer Ranald Mackechnie in the Victoria Vestibule in the Queen's private apartments at Windsor.
The Queen, who has been having mobility problems in recent months and had to cancel engagements as a result, has been pacing herself ahead of the commemorations. Also planned for the long weekend is a Service of Thanksgiving at St.
Paul's Cathedral on Friday and then a Party at the Palace concert on Saturday night, with some of the biggest names in music including Queen and Adam Lambert, Alicia Keys, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Andrea Bocelli, Ella Eyre, Craig David and Duran Duran.
The show, which will take place on a 360-degree stage around the Queen Victoria Memorial, will be closed by the legendary Diana Ross. Over 22,000 people are expected to attend, including more than 7,500 key workers, members of the Armed Forces, volunteers and charities.
The Jubilee weekend comes to a close on Sunday with a grand Platinum Jubilee Pageant, which also includes a Bollywood-themed Wedding Party by South Asian performance company Nutkhut, complete with a six-meter-high four-tiered cake and a specially designed sari.