A right royal knees-up took place at a patriotic Chester pub to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II becoming the longest reigning monarch in British history.
The £35 per head black tie function, including four course meal, was run by The Albion Inn, Albion Street, Chester, in conjunction with Chester Business Club.
The evening began and finished with the national anthem with a portrait of a young Queen above the piano which was played by Matt Baker while mezzo soprano Patricia Hammond and folk singer Roy Clinging sang numbers from throughout Her Majesty’s 63 years on the throne.
Landlord Mike Mercer, a member of the Royal Society of St George, is a huge royalist. He and his wife Christina last year visited Clarence House, the official London residence of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, where they met Camilla herself following an invitation because of their long-standing support for the War Memorials Trust. Camilla, who is the trust’s patron, shook their hands and had a chat.
Mike, who served in the merchant navy in his youth, said of the royals: “Age comes into it. I was brought up that way and so were most of the people from that generation. Love it or hate it, it’s just the way it is. There was a move a couple of years ago to try and get rid of the royal family so it’s nice to see things have turned around. The whole thing has been reinvented. Prince Harry is just one of the guys.
“I hate to say it but the Queen has reached the age now where she possibly won’t be around for much longer. The Duke looks phenomenal for 90 odd.”
Mr Mercer, whose pub is festooned with First World War memorabilia, was upset when a giant Union Flag was stolen from the porch last year.
He added: “It’s a fact that countries that have monarchies don’t seem to suffer the same sort of internal problems that beset countries that don’t have monarchies.”
