BBC随身英语(MP3+中英字幕) 第136期:女王钻禧庆典烟花秀

Fireworks for a Diamond Queen
Many Britons say we have a lot to thank HM Queen Elizabeth for.
 

This week certainly most of her subjects are thankful for a two-day holiday in celebration of her Diamond Jubilee. A weekend of feasting, pageantry and water on Sunday is followed by an evening of song, celebration and fire on Monday.
 

Sunday Lunch is a great British tradition and The Big Jubilee Lunch aimed to re-kindle a sense of community with people all over the UK sharing lunch with neighbours and friends in street parties or picnics to celebrate the Queen's 60-year reign. At these lunches, people have been tucking into some Great British food - pies, roasts, fish and chips, cream teas... even jellied eels.
Another highlight of the weekend festivities was The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant with more than 1,000 boats—traditional and modern—escorting the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh aboard a specially decorated Royal barge. Red, white and blue—the colours of the Union Jack—adorned bridges and buildings with sounds of church bells and foghorns floating along the River.
Monday evening brings music and light to Buckingham Palace. A special pop concert featuring artists including Elton John, Paul McCartney and Ed Sheeran is followed by a spectacular firework display. No doubt it will all go off with a bang. Before the fireworks, more than 4,000 beacons are to be lit in the UK and around the world. The Queen herself lights the UK's last beacon—the National Beacon—at about 22:30 BST. Whilst there are some who protest—surveys suggest around 20% of Britons feel the UK would be better off without a monarchy—most people will see HM Queen Elizabeth as a beacon of hope in an uncertain world and will be raising a glass to the Diamond Queen.