Biography

Welcome to the GR8CYK Royal Wedding Special Event page!

Also check Facebook - where there could be some additional live informatio0n being provided:
www.facebook.com/g8cyk​

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

The flag on this page is known as the "Grand Union" flag (google it) which seems nicely appropriate in the circumstances.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will wed on Saturday, May 19, in St. George's Chapel in the grounds of Granny's crib - Windsor Castle - about 20 miles (32km) west of central London.

Windsor is the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world set in the fabulous country estate of Windsor Great Park, and an official residence of Harry's granma - Queen Elizabeth II - who spends most of her weekends there.

The chapel has a capacity of around 800.

Vital info: London florist Philippa Craddock has been tasked with decorating the chapel. Her team plans to use white garden roses, peonies and foxgloves, as well as branches of beech, birch and hornbeam for the floral displays, which will be distributed to local charities after the wedding.

Many of the plants will be sourced from the gardens and parkland of the royally owned Crown Estate and Windsor Great Park, according to Kensington Palace.

The schedule.....

The couple will exchange vows at noon (7 a.m. EDT) in a ceremony expected to last an hour.
The first guests to arrive for the celebrations will be the 1,200 ordinary members of the public who will share in the festivities from the grounds of Windsor Castle. They are expected to arrive from 9 a.m. (4 a.m. ET).

The main wedding guests are due between 9.30 a.m. and 11 a.m. (4.30 a.m. to 6 a.m. ET) and will be driven to the Round Tower by coach before walking to the South Door of St. George's Chapel. (What?! Yours didn't arrive yet?)

Lastly, the royal family will head for the chapel via the Galilee Porch at 11.20 a.m. (6.20 a.m. ET). Some are expected to arrive by foot, while others will travel by car.

Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, will spend the night before the wedding with her at a hotel and accompany her to Windsor on the day. Her father, Thomas Markle Sr., was expected to walk her up the aisle but his attendance has been cast into doubt by a controversy over his alleged participation in staged photos and concerns over his health.

While the congregation is gathering, Meghan and her mother will depart their hotel and travel to the castle via the Long Walk, where members of the public will be able to get their first glimpse of the bride. The car will stop at the castle to let Meghan's mother out and pick up some of the bridal party before continuing to the church. There will be six young bridesmaids and four page boys in total, with Prince Harry's nephew Prince George and niece Princess Charlotte among them.

Meghan has opted not to have a maid of honor, according to Kensington Palace. "She has a very close-knit group of friends and did not want to choose one over the other," said Jason Knauf, Prince Harry's communications secretary.

After the ceremony has ended at 1 p.m. (8 a.m. ET), the newlyweds will greet the 200 representatives of Prince Harry's charities outside the chapel.
They will then leave Windsor Castle in a carriage for a roughly two-mile procession, traveling along the High Street through the town of Windsor, before returning to the castle by the Long Walk, according to the Palace. The procession is expected to take around 25 minutes.

They will travel in an Ascot Landau carriage pulled by Windsor Grey horses. The royal family owns five Ascot Landaus and uses them regularly for official events. Prince Harry traveled in one during the carriage procession at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011.

Windsor Grey horses also have a long royal pedigree -- they have been pulling the carriages of British monarchs and members of the royal family since the 1900s.
After the procession, the couple and guests will then attend a reception hosted by Queen Elizabeth II at St. George's Hall in the castle grounds, bringing the public aspects of the day to a close.

The final moment the public will get to share in will be when the bride and groom leave the castle grounds for a smaller evening reception for around 200 friends and family hosted by Prince Charles, Harry's father, at Frogmore House, a country house south of Windsor Castle.


More at... https://edition.cnn.com/2018/04/04/europe/royal-wedding-what-we-know-intl/index.html


Most bio wibble is is on the G8CYK page - and especially www.g8cyk.uk. Here is a short form:-

I was first licensed at age of 15 in 1968, and was an active 2m/70cm QRP experimenter when 1W transistors cost >£5 in REAL money in the 60s/70s. I got hooked on designing and making RX/TX things, and generally creating world class TVI :-).

And I would love to do all that again - in spite of all the imported gear that seems to have stunted much of the creativity in the hobby. Maybe not so much TVI, though, although digital TV gives precious few clues and simply breaks up when interfered with. Many neighbours of hams with discreet antennas (ie not 60 foot towers) probably have no idea why their TV goes on the blink every now and again. Satellite TV is probably 100% immune.

Worked DXCCs:

Equipment

Equipment in use...

For HF, I presently use the only rig to have these days - the almost ubiquitous Icom IC-7300.

An Icom IC-7100 provides backup HF, but is mostly for JT, 6m, 4m, 2m and 70cm

Hexbeam, G5RV and experimentals...