What is the Coronation?
The Coronation ceremony is centred around a religious service that has remained largely unchanged for over 1000 years! The ceremony involves a sovereign being crowned and the physical act of placing a solid gold crown on a monarch's head.
The event officially marks the monarch's role as the head of the Church of England and formalises the transfer of the title and powers.
This Coronation will see His Majesty King Charles III crowned alongside The Queen Consort and will mark our monarch’s role today and look towards the future reign. The ceremony will be conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury and is suspected to be smaller in scale than Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, but the celebrations around the country will aim to bring communities together, just as they did back in 1953.
The Coronation service will begin at 11am on Saturday 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey.
How are communities celebrating?
The crowning of a new monarch – do events get much bigger than this? There will be an extra bank holiday across the UK on Monday 8 May for people to celebrate and if you’re not making your way down to London you can catch the celebrations on television. Buckingham Palace has announced several events for the weekend, including a concert at Windsor Castle on Sunday 7 May, an exciting event you won’t want to miss on BBC one at 8.00pm.
Communities are also being invited to hold street parties and to take part in volunteering projects in their local community as part of the Big Help Out initiative. More on how you can get involved below…
How can I take part?
From street parties to taking part in the Big Help Out, there are lots of ways to celebrate the Coronation weekend. There are plenty of free resources out there to help you with planning or attending. On the Eden Project Communities website there is a map which allows you to search for events in your local area.
Grab your guide to organising a street party here.
On Monday, 8 May people are being encouraged to take part in The Big Help Out, an opportunity to try volunteering and join the work being undertaken to support their local areas.
There are plenty of free resources to help you plan your Coronation activities:
The Big Lunch guides
If you’re not sure where to start, the Big Lunch Guide has you covered. Download their starter-pack if you want to organise your own event.
Get crafty
Fancy making your own bunting? How about your own Big Lunch flags? There are a range of different craft ideas for the whole family to get involved in. Take a look and get crafting!
Scrumptious Coronation party recipes
Stuck for ideas on what food to make for your celebrations? Not to worry! BBC Food has created a range of party recipes to help you get started, including ‘Union Jack shortbread.’ Yum!
Social media
To keep up to date on everything related to the Coronation, there are plenty of official social media accounts you can follow:
• Instagram: @theroyalfamily | @edencommunities
• Twitter: @royalfamily | @edencommunities
• Facebook: @thebritishmonarchy | @edenprojectcommunities
If you are posting content about the Coronation, use the hashtags #Coronation and/or #CoronationBigLunch. Don’t forget to tag us @OrbitHelp so that you can share your photos with the Orbit community.
Enjoy the celebrations – and don’t forget to keep checking back on our social media channels where we will be keeping you updated with all things #Coronation
