June 1951, a memorable day and week for our Town, Portadown welcomed HM Queen Elizabeth and the Princess Margaret at the start of Festival of Britain week celebrations. The original plan was that Her Majesty would have accompanied King George VI, unfortunately he was ill and unable to travel and in the circumstances The Princess Margaret accompanied her mother.
The King never recovered from his illness and sadly died 8 months later on the 6th, February 1952; he was succeeded by our present Queen Elizabeth II.
These six clips show various celebrations which took place in Portadown during that week. How many of us remember those events? I do, even though I was only ten years of age then.
Each clip is 7 minutes long, so clear some time to view the complete 40 minutes in six parts. You will see our youth organizations, sports in the Public Park and Shamrock Park, displays of Portadown Unit of the Territorial Army and our Fire service Brigade, not forgetting street scenes and the many local dignitaries of the time. You may even catch a glimpse of your parents or grandparents or yourself!
Duration : 0:7:43
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