IT WILL be 60 years on Monday since the Queen took over the top job from her dad King George VI, after he died because he forgot to wear a hat. Well, anyway, thats the reason for his death I believed as a child.
My parents would talk about the king waving Princess Elizabeth off at the airport as she left with the Duke of Edinburgh for a tour of the Commonwealth the last time he would see his daughter.
It was a cold, windy day and the King was bareheaded.
Whenever I saw pictures of this occasion over the years, I discovered my parents were right. The King was without his distinctive trilby.
Ive since learned that the much-loved king was terminally ill (he had lung cancer), so royal watchers were naturally surprised that he did not wrap up warm on such a chilly February day.
I remained convinced for some time that you could die simply from being hatless. Luckily, I had a Fair Isle beret, and later a furry hat with pom poms, which kept me safe.
The only other British monarch to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee has been Queen Victoria, in 1897, and now its our turn the New Elizabethans to celebrate. The jollity will centre on an extended holiday weekend in June, and will include a pageant on the Thames and the lighting of 2,012 beacons across the country.
Towns in the UK will compete for city status to be granted by the Queen in her special year, and local authorities could apply.
So... the City of Uxbridge? Bring it on!
n YOU know how frustrating it is when you ring up an organisation and have to keep jumping through hoops until you get a real person? Or you email and get nothing back?
Well, Ive just had a wonderful response from an internet bookseller after a query about a missing order.
It said: Thank you for contacting us. This is an automated response from a robot confirming the receipt of your ticket.
A real human being will get back to you as soon as possible. Please do not reply, as it could add to the time it takes our humans to respond to your issue.
Brilliant.
