British envoy in Kolkata to host coronation reception

KOLKATA: With England preparing for the coronation in seven decades, the British Deputy High Commission in Kolkata lined up multiple events to mark King Charles III’s and the Queen consort’s ascent to the throne.
During the ceremony between 3pm and 5.30pm IST on Saturday, the Archbishop of Canterbury will crown King Charles III and the Queen consort at Westminster Abbey in London. While the event will be televised live across the world, the British Deputy High Commission will play the BBC YouTube channel on Saturday evening, when acting deputy high commissioner Peter Cook will host a reception at a city hotel from 7.30pm. “I am delighted and privileged to mark this historic milestone,” Cook said.
Cook on Friday will interact with hearing-impaired cricketers at Indian Deaf Cricket Association’s Tri-Nation ODI Series for the Deaf with teams from India, Bangladesh and Nepal at Rajarhat. This is in line with the spirit of the themes of the coronation ceremony: Youth, community, diversity and sustainability. On Monday, Cook and his wife Maureen will volunteer and interact with children from NGO CRY.
The last coronation ceremony in the UK was held on June 2, 1953, when Elizabeth II was crowned the Queen. It was the first British coronation to be fully televised. Television cameras were not allowed inside the abbey during her parents’ coronation in 1937.