This weekend, communities across our city will be celebrating Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, with street parties, special musical performances and bunting galore. For most of us, the Queen has been a constant throughout our lives, and her Platinum Jubilee offers us the chance to come together, to celebrate her service and to enjoy a long weekend.

To have served our country, and of course the Commonwealth, so steadfastly for 70 years is a remarkable achievement – and one that may never be repeated. Over those 70 years, the Queen has visited Birmingham 14 times, and our city has changed beyond all recognition since her first visit as Monarch in 1954.

I was honoured to meet Her Majesty when she visited Birmingham in her Diamond Jubilee year of 2012, just weeks before the celebration of national pride that was the London Olympic Games.

Ten years later, and in another Jubilee year, it is now Birmingham that is in the spotlight as we prepare to host the Commonwealth Games. I know as a city that we will show the very best of Birmingham to the world, and we will make Her Majesty and the Commonwealth proud of what we have achieved.

I hope that you all have a wonderful Jubilee weekend.

This blog was posted on 1 June 2022