London: RAAF Corporal Dean Norman has been dreaming of this all his adult life: marching “Queen and Country” through the landmarks of London alongside more than 1,500 military and women from across the Commonwealth.
Part of a 39-member Australian contingent of Navy, Air Force and Army personnel, Norman says he will fight to contain the excitement of participating in the military show that will be the inaugural event of the Platinum Jubilee Sunday. evening AEST. Organizers have promised it will be a “once in a generation” show centered on Buckingham Palace and its environs.
RAAF Corporal Dean Norman, pictured in the rehearsal this week, says the march to the Queen’s Jubilee pageant will be one of the most exciting moments of his life.
The 55-year-old turns 30 in the Air Force this week. He has spent most of the last two decades in Canberra as part of the Australian Federation Guard.
“It took a long time for the stars to line up, but here I am,” Norman says. “It’s not even a unique experience in life. I don’t think we’re going to live anything like this again, so it makes it more special.”
An estimated 1 million viewers will take to the streets for the event, with a worldwide television audience of 1 billion. About 10,000 people take part, with performers from all parts of the country and the Commonwealth (military and creative, dancers and supermodels) coming together on the route to the Palace. These include regiments and units that have a special relationship with the Queen, including her Gurkha Engineers, the Royal Regiment of Scotland, the Royal Irish Regiment and the Royal Welsh and more than 200 horses.
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They will be joined by staff from countries such as Canada, New Zealand, Pakistan, Ghana, Belize, Jamaica and Sri Lanka, as they travel more than 3km from Wellington Barracks to Westminster Abbey, Houses of Parliament. Downing. Street, towards Nelson’s Column, turning left towards Buckingham Palace.
“The ceremonial side of things is something that has always attracted me and having the opportunity like this is something that I will treasure,” Norman says.