Visitors to Buckingham Palace will have the opportunity to reenact the iconic moment from the royal family’s balcony… almost | UK News

The public is getting the chance to have their own moment on the balcony of Buckingham Palace… almost.

For the first time, the central room behind the palace’s famous balcony will be open to groups of visitors.

Next week, ticket holders will have the opportunity to take a look at the hall where the royal family gathers on grand occasions before heading out to see the public.

But instead of being able to step out onto the balcony, the doors will remain closed and they will have the opportunity to take in the view of the Mall through the net curtains.

The East Wing tour is a new addition to the palace’s annual summer opening.

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Nearly 6,000 tickets were made available but sold out within hours of going on sale in April.

Caroline de Guitaut, surveyor of the king’s works of art, said: “It was Prince Albert’s idea to have a balcony at Buckingham Palace, because he saw it as a way of allowing the royal family to connect with the people, and of course this is exactly how, in a sense, it continues to be used on important occasions.

“But it came into use very early in Queen Victoria’s reign, from 1851, dispensing troops for the Crimean War and receiving them back on return.”

The East Wing of the palace was built between 1847 and 1849 to accommodate Queen Victoria’s growing family, and the development included the open, horseshoe-shaped former royal residence.

It has been undergoing renovation works for five years. More than 3,500 pieces of art had to be removed and stored safely. Around 47,000 floorboards had to be removed and replaced.

Guided tours of the East Wing will take visitors along much of the 240-foot-long main hallway and will include the yellow living room and the central room behind the porch.

The yellow living room features an oriental-style fireplace from George IV’s seaside pleasure palace – the Brighton Pavilion, an elaborate gold curtain rail and even some wallpaper from the pavilion that was discovered in storage by George IV’s wife. George V, Queen Mary and hung at her request. .

Highlights in the central room include a newly restored glass chandelier shaped like a lotus flower and two 18th-century Chinese imperial silk tapestries, presented to Victoria by Guangxu, Emperor of China, to mark her Diamond Jubilee in 1897 .

Although tickets for the East Wing tour are sold out, visitors with a standard state room ticket will be able to visit the 19 rooms used by the royal family for official entertainment.

In the ballroom they can see the artist Jonathan Yeo’s new portrait of the kingwith its striking red background.