This morning the Anicca Digital office was buzzing with possibility of our sovereign walking down the streets towards Castle View HQ– but no such luck. Her Majesty arrived at 11:45 am, and a couple of the more enthusiastic members of the team were there, waving their metaphoric union jacks.
The Queen arrived in Magazine square in the city centre to kick off her Jubilee tour of the country in celebration of her 60 years on the throne.
There were children standing on parents shoulders, cheerleaders on each others shoulders, and even one man sat up in a tree (honestly) to make sure he got a look at Her Majesty.
The Queen was wearing a cerise skirt suit (she wears bright colours so that she can be noticed in a crowd) and the Duchess of Cambridge an elegant teal and black trim ensemble.
The atmosphere was genuinely buzzing. I’ve lived in Leicester for four years now, and not once have I know such excitement, patriotism or such a crowd gather.
By 8am this morning, the Queen was already trending and according to our sources, Leicester’s trends had a definite royal theme. #RoyalDMU was trending over the Twittersphere. It should be acknowledged that most of these tweets were coming from the surrounding students.
There was a heavy police presence in the area, with patrol cars on the roads bordering the station and a helicopter overhead.
The Queen and the duchess sat side-by-side watching a fashion parade planned by DMU fashion students, during which six of them presented the duchess with a bespoke design for a pair of shoes, from which she chose her favourite.
Becka Hunt, the chosen competition winner said that having her design chosen by the duchess was “incredible”.
“I’m kind of in shock still – it’s just amazing,” she said. “She’s already become the biggest fashion icon you could ever see.”
The crowds which then gathered outside Leicester Cathedral stood nine-deep in some parts of the road and audibly showed their excitement for the appearance of the Royals.
The royals then made their way into Leicester city centre, where the Queen unveiled a plaque which would be placed in the now newly named Jubilee Square.
The Mayor of Leicester, Sir Peter Soulsby, presented the Queen with a photo album capturing scenes of her previous visits to Leicester and said the plaque was “a permanent reminder of her visit today”.