One of my claims to fame (?) is that I have sung at the Royal Albert Hall. No, not at the last night of the Proms with everyone else, but actually on stage. At the age of 13, I was picked to sing Alto in a concert consisting of pupils from Senior Schools. We sang Handel’s Messiah and it was an experience that I will never forget. Following years, we moved to the Royal Festival Hall and sang Bach’s St Matthew Passion and also Hayden’s Creation, but being able to see “behind the scenes” at the Royal Albert Hall was rather magical.
It was originally going to be called the Central Hall and was the brain child of Prince Albert who had the idea that it was to be used to “promote understanding and appreciation of the Arts and Sciences”. It was to stand in the heart of the South Kensington estate, which was to be developed with the profits of the Great Exhibition of 1851. Sadly, when Prince Albert died in 1861, all plans ground to a halt. However, Albert’s collaborator on the Great Exhibition, Henry Cole, took up the baton (so to speak ) and work started again in 1867. Renamed The Royal Albert Hall in honour of the Prince, his widow Queen Victoria officially opened the building today, 29th March, back in 1871. However, Victoria was so overcome by emotion that her son, the Prince of Wales had to speak in her place.
The roof under construction in 1869 - no Health & Safety then!
When the Queen was Speechless!
Blog entry posted in 'When the Queen was Speechless!', Mar 29, 2021.
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