photo: Jacob King/PA Wire/PA Images

Message from Mrs Alison Millar, Lord-Lieutenant of County Londonderry to Her Majesty the Queen upon the start of her Platinum Jubilee Year’

“As Her Majesty’s representative in County Londonderry I am honoured and delighted to send the warmest congratulations to the Queen in this Her Platinum Jubilee Year. I send them from myself, the Lieutenancy and the County of Londonderry just as good wishes would have been sent on her Coronation on the 6th of February 1952 from the then Lord Lieutenant of the County, Sir Dudley McCorkell. It is wonderful to see her 70 years of steadfast Service to the Nation and Commonwealth marked with a year of celebrations that we can all participate in some way.

There will be a 4-day Bank Holiday from Thursday 2nd June through to Sunday 5th June. The weekend will include a spectacular Birthday Parade in London to which the public is invited to apply for tickets at qbp.army.mod.uk. Beacons will be lit and street parties held across the UK.

There will be many other projects and events including ‘The Queen’s Green Canopy’ which encourages us all – whether through schools, youth organisations, Councils, businesses or indeed individually – to plant trees and have them recorded, for posterity, on a unique mapping scheme. This is a country-wide project that not only celebrates the Queen’s long reign but shows her depth of understanding in addressing the needs of our environment. Information on this can be obtained on https://www.royal.uk/platinumjubilee

Her Majesty has visited the County many times during Her Reign, the last being in 2016 when she came to Coleraine and then traveled by steam train to open the new station at Bellarena. Although at the age of 95 she does not travel as much as previously she remains immensely hardworking, each week meeting the Prime Minister, reading through an immense amount of correspondence, government and other papers and attending to varied duties and receptions.

She is truly remarkable and we wish Her good health and a hugely enjoyable Platinum Jubilee Year.”