The extravagant coronation ceremony of King Charles III blasted over loudspeakers before crowds in the newly-opened Eurovision Village.
The vast grounds of the world's most famous international song contest opened on the Pier Head last night, with thousands of fans flocking to catch a glimpse of the stage.
Today the gates opened on a live broadcast of the taxpayer-funded £50-100m coronation, which took place beside the bronze Beatles statue, under the proudly outspread wings of the city's Liver birds. People queued for entry ahead of the official opening at 10.30am.
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Local lady Maria O’Neill was supposed to join the coronation celebrations in London - but was forced to cancel her plans when her three-year-old Maltese dog Bella was rushed in for hernia surgery. Attending the live broadcast with Bella, she said: “I was actually meant to be in London but then she had an operation yesterday, so I’ve come here instead!”
Debbie Wroe, visiting from Manchester, said: “We couldn’t get tickets to Eurovision itself - we tried - so we thought we’d do the next best and go and have a look around, and watch the coronation if we can.”
Sue Sharkey, from Wigan said: “I think it’s wonderful, all these people here, it’s lovely. I think a lot of young people don’t agree with [the coronation] but oldies like me, it’s what we’ve been brought up with.”
Bars and food trucks selling pizza, burgers, doughnuts, fried chicken and plant-based options filled the village plaza.
Autumn Greaves, from D&J Catering, which is operating three food trucks within the area, said she was looking forward to Eurovision and taking part in "something different." She said: “It’s something that no one has ever done before. We do a lot of festivals and this is something involved in culture. A lot of our staff are from different places. It’s nice to be one big family in Liverpool."
Natasha Meade, on the company's Plant Based Fried Chick'n stand, added: “We love this city. We come from Leicester so it’s a very different vibe. This is only the second time we’ve brought this unit out. We usually do things like festivals, Creamfields, so this is completely different.”
As King Charles was crowned, mic tests were ongoing on the big Eurovision stage, where acts from all corners of the continent will gather next weekend for a musical extravaganza.
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