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Royal Rota


Nick Flowers

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In the UK, when the Queen or any senior member of the Royal Family appears in public in an event that the press think is newsworthy, in order to avoid an unseemly scrum of vermin, one TV crew is selected to cover the event and their footage is made available to all outlets. I have been on a Royal Rota, as it is known, a few times and sometimes it is an interesting experience. One common thread that runs through nearly every time is their tardiness. If Punctuality is the Politeness of Princes, our lot are a singularly ungracious bunch and the Heroes of the Press, who always turn up early, are left cooling their heels for a long time past the scheduled time. Protocol is quite strict. In a line up of worthies being glad-handed by the Monarch, it is preferred that the recipient of Royal Favour be featured rather than a close up on Her Majesty; this frequently does not happen as it is more newsworthy to have a close-up on the Queen in case SOMETHING happens. Likewise you mustn't get the boom in close enough to hear what is being said, and I have been ticked off by the Royal Minders for getting the 416 too close to the Royal presence.

There was an occasion when the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother was doing a tour of the Cinque Ports (foreigners look it up) in her capacity of Lord Warden. We were the Royal Rota crew (camera, sound and sparks) and we were being very careful not to intrude. During the morning a flunky told us that the hand lamp our spark was using was dazzling HRH. He extended the pole to get it higher and all was well. In the afternoon we were backing down a corridor ahead of her and as planned we turned off down a side corridor so the Royal party could continue on. To our great consternation she turned off and followed us. We were gibbering with concern that we had done the wrong thing but she addressed Gerry, the spark, to thank him for making the hand lamp higher. Rather nice.

The final part was when she left Dover harbour on the Royal Yacht Britannia. She was standing on the rear platform and we had gone out to the end of the harbour wall. There was a Marine Band playing Sunset; the sun was setting behind the white cliffs, and Her majesty turned and waved to us and mouthed Thank You.

 

 

 

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When Prince Charles went off to Australia during his youth - I think he was attending a finishing school there (!) - one of the headlines over in the UK was 'Pommy Charlie's noo awa". [cf. The Scottish song 'Bonny Charlie's noo awa].

Aeroplanes containing Royals above a certain rank have what is known as 'Purple Air Space' all around them and no other aircraft is allowed anywhere near - this in addition to the usual safety area. We were filming him in Hull (sniggering, Molesworth?) and afterwards our 'plane was held back quite a long time until his had cleared the area. Actually, he seems to be OK. Unlike his brother Andrew.

I seem to remember that when the Queen is either ascending or descending stairs photography is limited in case flash photography causes her to miss her step and go a*** over t**.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
1 hour ago, atheisticmystic said:

Sweet !

We say head over heels...nothing more common than a colonial commoner, hey ?

best

 

My dear chap! Your delicacy makes you a credit to your country, and indeed it is the more usual form over here.

It is I, Britannia's Shame, who fully suit being the object for the phrase:

Odi profanum vulgus et arceo.

(Horace Odes III 1)

I loathe the uneducated mass and keep them away from me.

 

 

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6 hours ago, Nick Flowers said:

My dear chap! Your delicacy makes you a credit to your country, and indeed it is the more usual form over here.

It is I, Britannia's Shame, who fully suit being the object for the phrase:

Odi profanum vulgus et arceo.

(Horace Odes III 1)

I loathe the uneducated mass and keep them away from me.

 

 

Oh thank you ! And I think I've also found my next ontologically ambiguous, home-made, tattoo, "Odi profanum vulgus et arceo"...

I think that other colonial commoner, Nux, was right on when he said:

 

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