This film is part of Free

Claygate Celebrates the Coronation

Exotic floats and fancy-dress feature in the Surrey village's exuberant celebrations for Queen Elizabeth's Coronation.

Amateur film 1953 8 mins Silent

From the collection of:

Logo for Screen Archive South East

Overview

The 6th of June 1953 sees the Surrey village of Claygate pull out all the stops in its Coronation festivities. There's a parade of decorated floats ranging from the everyday to the bizarrely exotic. There's a reference to Thor Heyerdahl's Kon-Tike expedition as well as a panto-horse and a fairy. We see a motorcade of period cars with period-costumed passengers pass by, followed by the 'Queen' herself before the final celebratory bonfire and fireworks.