BRITAIN will celebrate King Charles’s Coronation with a three-day party – and The Sun is giving YOU the chance to win your very own royal bash.
People all over the country are being encouraged to hold a Coronation Big Lunch in celebration of King Charles III being crowned next month and we are giving away £15,000 to help get the parties started.
Fifteen readers can win £1,000 to host their own street party or local get-together over the weekend of Saturday, May 6 to Monday, May 8, which has been declared a Bank Holiday to mark the Coronation.
All the details on how to enter are printed below.
The giveaway is being made possible thanks to The Sun and the National Lottery, which is working in partnership with The Coronation Big Lunch with organisers encouraging communities to celebrate with gatherings and parties.
Adam Chataway, head of brand partnerships at the National Lottery, said: “Thanks to National Lottery players, we’re proud to support The Coronation Big Lunch, helping communities across the country to come together to celebrate the crowning of King Charles III.
“A street party, no matter how big or small, is the perfect way to get to know your neighbours, bring friends and family together and make the most of the long weekend.”
The first Big Lunch was held in 2009 and the tradition has continued every year since as a way to encourage communities to get to know each other.
Street parties are believed to have started in Britain in 1919, as “peace teas” following World War One, mainly as a treat for children.
After this, the uniquely British tradition developed as neighbours continued to organise gatherings on all major days of celebration, from royal weddings to jubilees.
Millions of people took part in The Big Jubilee Lunch, celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 2012.
Lindsey Brummitt, programme director at Eden Project Communities, organisers of the Coronation Big Lunch, said: “There’s nothing better than a community knees-up and this year is extra-special, so we’re hoping to see neighbourhoods across the UK dig out the bunting, pop some invites through the door and come together to celebrate.
“If you’re keen to organise a Coronation Big Lunch but aren’t sure where to start, have a look at our top tips for keeping your celebration as budget-friendly as possible, and sign up for a digital pack full of ideas and inspiration at coronationbiglunch.com.”
Here we bring you our guide on how to hold a right royal knees up to remember.
How to enter
HERE is your chance to win one of 15 £1,000 prizes to lay on your own Coronation party for family, friends and neighbours.
Just think of all the food, drink and decorations you could buy with that!
To enter the competition follow these steps:
- Download the Sun Savers app or sign up at sunsavers.co.uk.
- Go to the Offers section and click “Start Collecting” on the Win A Coronation Party page.
- Collect FOUR out of eight Sun Savers codes. We will print one daily from today until Saturday, April 15. Today’s code is on page 20.
- Enter or scan your four Sun Savers codes on the app or website by midnight on Friday, April 21, to be automatically entered into the competition.
… and how to make it go with a bang
GET ORGANISED: A PARTY need not be complicated. If everyone pitches in, it can be arranged easily.
With a month to go, get together with neighbours this week and co-ordinate who has table and chairs to lend.
Ask your local school or community centre if you can borrow some.
It is a good idea to set up a Whatsapp group to keep everyone on track.
Fairy Lights can look great. Appeal for people to get their Christmas lights out of the loft.
Do people have garden games or outdoor lanterns you can borrow?
To make sure your party goes with a bang, every household could put a donation into a kitty for decorations, prizes and activities.
Any excess funds can be donated to charity. If you have permission to close your street, using dustbins to create a simple barrier is a good idea, or make a sign.
PARTY GAMES: PARENTING expert Tanith Carey says: “Just like the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, the upcoming crowning of King Charles III on May 6 will be an event children will never forget.
“Help make [it] even more of a day to treasure with these royal-themed kids’ activities.”
Tanith, the author of What’s My Child Thinking? Practical Child Psychology For Modern Parents, shares some games to keep the kids and grown-ups entertained…
Pin The Crown On The King: Try a regal take on pin the tail on the donkey. Draw a picture of our monarch, which is about the same height as the kids playing, and stick it on a wall.
Cut out a cardboard crown shape and put some Blu Tack on the back then blindfold each player and spin them twice. Mark their guesses in pencil to see who gets closest.
Pavement Kings and Queens: Get the kids to lie down and draw around each other with chalks then have fun adding details like cloaks, crowns and jewels.
Make Your Own Crown: While King Charles will receive the St Edward’s Crown, which is more than 360 years old, set up a craft table so kids can make their own.
Collect stiff paper for the headbands and materials such as scraps of velvet, felt and foil, which children can stick on their crown with glue.
Royal Dress-up Parade: Put together a chest of old clothes from friends and neighbours to make a street dressing-up box. Bigger bits of material can be used as cloaks.
Kings And Queens Quiz: Put together simple questions such as who the last king was to have his head chopped off and what he has in common with the current king (clue: they have the same name).
Or draw up a true-or-false royal trivia quiz asking children to say which outlandish facts are right and wrong.
Royal Bingo: If you want the kids to watch the Coronation alongside you, draw up a grid of squares with words or pictures of things to look out for, such as horses, flags, thrones and crowns then get kids to cross them off as they spot them.
GET CRAFTY: YOU don’t need to break the bank laying on fancy decorations.
Money For Nothing presenter Sarah Moore says we should follow the lead of our new king, who is a committed environmentalist, by trying to reuse old items.
Bunting: “I love a little bunting. Cut oblongs of newspaper in strips, fold them in half over some string and snip a little inverted triangle at the end to make them look regal.”
Paper Crowns: “No formal headgear is needed for a street party but a crown makes us all feel important. Cover with recycled foil from sweet wrappers, milk bottle tops or reclaimed kitchen foil.”
Paper chains: “Paper chains aren’t just for Christmas. Use colourful pages from magazines. Suspend them from twigs in flower pots in the middle of the tables.”