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CNN Live Event/Special
Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee; Planned Flyby Canceled Due to Heavy Rain
Aired June 03, 2012 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PIERS MORGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's bring in Richard Quest and also rejoining us, India Hicks, she was a bridesmaid for Princess Diana. Welcome to you both.
INDIA HICKS: Thank you.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back.
MORGAN: It is godawful weather, but we don't care, do we?
HICKS: No, we are British.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We really don't care. I mean this is just -- you know, we will remember the day because it was like this.
MORGAN: You have taken part in many of these royal ceremonies, you've been on the famous balcony, one of Princess Diana's bridesmaids.
BALDWIN: Many times she says, many times she has been on the balcony right now.
HICKS: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
MORGAN: What is it -- what is it actually like to be part of the royal circle on a day like this?
HICKS: Well, when I was part of that royal circle, I was a much younger girl, so you could get away with an awful lot. But they do look after you, big bowls of smarties sitting inside that palace.
MORGAN: So these are little chocolates for our American viewers.
(CROSSTALK)
HICKS: Yes, that's exactly. Yes, sorry, Brooke.
(CROSSTALK)
HICKS: Yes, exactly. Yes. So they do look after you, homemade lemonade, lemon refresher it is called. And a lot of stuff ... MORGAN: Any alcohol?
HICKS: Yes.
BALDWIN: Not for her when she was 11.
HICKS: Yes.
BALDWIN: In that carriage heading to Princess Diana's wedding, not at all.
MORGAN: Would the queen have a tipple, one of her famous gin and (inaudible)?
HICKS: I wouldn't necessarily have noticed. But I'm sure. They are very relaxed. There is a family atmosphere. But as you say, on the actual balcony, there definitely is a hierarchy as to who is standing where.
MORGAN: You know who I really want to talk to? I want to talk to our colleague, Zain, who is on one of these boats in torrential, torrential rain. Zain, are you alive? Have you capsized? What is going on?
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I really want to use this umbrella.
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: You look freezing.
(CROSSTALK)
VERJEE: It's telling me that I will have a Mary Poppins situation. I am. I really want to use this umbrella, Piers, but the captain of the vessel is telling me we will have a Mary Poppins-like situation if I open this. So I've chosen just to get wet and stand in the torrential rain here.
What you are seeing right now is the world's largest traffic jam. What has been happening the last 20 minutes or so is that the vessels upfront have kind of braked a little bit, so everyone else had stopped as well, and had pushed on their brakes harder, kind of the situation that you would see on any regular motorway. But it is picking up now, and things have gotten back into formation, and we are about 15 minutes or so away from the queen, feeling pretty excited.
You really do get a historical sense when you are riding through this flotilla. I'm in the narrow boat section and there's a wide sense of history here. For example, one of the vessels nearby is powered by coal. It really gives you a sense of the vastness and the differences between the vessels that exist here. One of the major feats that they have had to accomplish is logistical, and everybody is communicating on a specific radio channel here. All these vessels are communicating on Channel 17. In this particular section, they are communicating on 17 (ph), that's a manner in which they are able just to figure out exactly what is happening, but everyone is very excited. We are heading.
MORGAN: I'm sorry--
(CROSSTALK)
VERJEE: And everything seems to be going well.
MORGAN: Oh, the museum (ph), you're right.
VERJEE: One of the (inaudible) telling me -- yes.
MORGAN: And Zain, but just -- I think what the big news is that despite all the boats there, unprecedented number, we're seeing nobody capsizing, nobody falling in, no boats colliding. It's been an extraordinarily incident-free flotilla so far.
BALDWIN: So, that's Zain. And she was describing earlier bumper boats ...
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: She is gone. Anybody (inaudible)? Did she go down? Woman overboard?
QUEST: It was all going very well until Morgan opened his mouth.
BALDWIN: Typical. Typical. We have more pictures here, diamond jubilee. We want to talk to our guests here in a moment. Richard Quest and India Hicks, but we've got to take a quick break, back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Back here live on the River Thames. We were just talking, and I want to bring in our guests, Dickie Arbiter and India Hicks. And Dickie was noticing, you know, on the top of this Spirit of Chartwell, the royal barge, they have -- I'm told they chose that boat because of the roof, because they could have these two thrones for her majesty and her husband. Yet this entire time, she's thrown on a white scarf, as it is chilly, she has not yet sat.
ARBITER: Well, they won't use them. They've got 177 years between the two of them, and they have stood the whole way.
MORGAN: The queen is how old?
ARBITER: She is 86.
MORGAN: And Prince Philip is 90?
ARBITER: He is going to be 91 next Sunday.
MORGAN: And that is amazing, isn't it?
ARBITER: It is absolutely amazing. BALDWIN: Celebrating 65 years of marriage this year. And, you know, in reading, in preparing for this trip over here, I was reading a lot of people have criticized the queen for not smiling as much. But India, you say we will definitely be seeing a smile once we see that flyover in a matter of minutes.
HICKS: I think so. I think that was the royal moment I used to remember as a child standing there, when all the royals had their heads up watching that incredible fly pass go past, and the queen does crack a smile and-
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: If you are all following all this, we'd love to hear from you. The hash tag to use is @jubileecnn, or you can just tweet me, if you like. Do whatever you want. @piersmorgan or at ...
BALDWIN: BrookeBCNN.
MORGAN: Yeah, if you want to hear from me, get involved in this. You know there's never going to be in our lifetime an event like this again in this country. It is truly a one-off.
BALDWIN: What about the preparations? You having been the queen spokesman for, what, some 12 years, Dickie.
ARBITER: Yes.
BALDWIN: What in a -- how many months -- is that even -- was that months in preparation for this particular flotilla?
ARBITER: Well, there is probably a little bit over a year for the preparation of this, this pageant. What happens is that you get the right people in to organize these things. Are we going to compete with this?
BALDWIN: I don't know.
MORGAN: That's not you singing, isn't it?
ARBITER: I thought it was you. No, you get the right people in, you know, the palace can't possibly organize something like this. They are very good at organizing state functions, very good at organizing things in Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, but when it comes to outside things, there are great experts out there. It happened at the time of the golden jubilee ten years ago, it happens today. Lord Salisbury in charge of this whole thing and he's put it all together.
MORGAN: Let's go to Max Foster. He is behind me. By its (ph) average, it is tumultuous rain now. Max, you must now be about three feet in water, aren't you?
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At least I'm getting paid for it, I guess, Piers. Unbelievable. But actually, when all boats come by everyone, yes, totally into -- look at this, this is British spirit for you, Piers.
CHILDREN (singing)
FOSTER: Nothing is going to dampen your spirits.
(CROSSTALK)
FOSTER: You are having a good time? You are?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOSTER: Happy you came?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FOSTER: Oh yeah? You're glad you saw the queen?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
(CROSSTALK)
FOSTER: Have you had a good day, really or is it very exhausting?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm now really proud to be British. I am just sad that the rest of the world just see it raining, because it was lovely to be here today.
FOSTER: Well maybe they're not really seeing the rain on camera. We are certainly feeling it. Guys, are you -- you came fully prepared. You must be British.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Australian.
FOSTER: You're Australian? Australian, the commonwealth represented along with the Brits. I'll leave you with that, Piers. Because these guys are great.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: From singing "Along the Shores," we want to take you to break here, the song again is "Rhythm of the River."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Welcome back to London, a rain-soaked London, but our spirits aren't dampened, although just about every other part of us is. It has been an incredible afternoon. We're building up now to the grand finale down here at Tower Bridge, where the queen will be witnessing a flyby, London Philharmonic Orchestra, really an orgy of excitement awaits us. I'm joined again by Richard Quest.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: It's Zain.
MORGAN: Right in here, this is our colleague, Zain, on her boat. Right behind us - she can't talk to us --
BALDWIN: She's in the blue. She's is the blue.
MORGAN: She may be frozen to the spot as she is in the blue.
BALDWIN: There she is!
MORGAN: There's our Zain. She is arrived. She isn't frozen. But my God, it must be miserable. It is miserable up here, but we are not going to be dampened.
BALDWIN: Misery aside. Let's talk music. Because I know there were ten different musical vessels here, as part of this entire flotilla. Prince Charles is the patron of this entire pageant. And from what I understand in talking to the conductor the other day of the London Philharmonic, he said ultimately it was Prince Charles and a panel to give the thumbs-up as far as which music, which repertoires are played.
QUEST: Yes. And what we have is -- we are getting to the point now where it is the mayor's jubilee band playing a selection of light favorites, and then you have got "Rhythm on the River."
MORGAN: Yes.
QUEST: But it's the variety from the Shree Mahadevan pipe and drums through to a jazz band. Through to choir, which we have heard...
BALDWIN: Bollywood, the Beatles.
QUEST: That's right. And then the finale will be the majestic Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
BALDWIN: The national anthem. And the flyover.
MORGAN: And the flyby is going to be pretty extraordinary, isn't it? It's going to have probably some of the great World War II planes at the front, and then a kind of squadron of jets around it. Or helicopters.
QUEST: Right. Right. So, Swordfish (ph) at the front, and then around them will be nine helicopters, four Links (ph), three Merlins and two Sea Kings.
BALDWIN: We want to get a quick break in, so we can bring you this grand finale and all this grandeur live.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: You are watching the diamond jubilee.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Welcome back to CNN's live coverage of the queen's diamond jubilee here in London. It is lashing with rain. But no pain, no gain, is our maxim in this country. And the queen is having a wonderful time, we are all having a wonderful time. It is an extravaganza the like of which I don't think Britain has ever seen before and will never see again, certainly in our lifetime. Ms. Brooke, you are an American, we have an American on this panel right now. What do you think of all this?
BALDWIN: All right, you know, in preparing for just coming here today, I kept trying to think of what possibly could compare. I have been to inaugurations, you know, in terms of the crowds and the fanfare, nothing ...
MORGAN: Yes.
BALDWIN: ... nothing could compare. I mean, the lovely weather you have provided today, in addition to the crowds, I have never seen it.
MORGAN: And lots of Americans -- well, people actually asked me why do Americans love the royal family so much? Why is it?
BALDWIN: I can't exactly speak on behalf of my country, Mr. Morgan, but I will say that there were polls out this recently and they ranked her majesty -- her majesty as something like 82 percent. I mean, if only President Obama could have those kinds of numbers.
MORGAN: Well, (inaudible), I saw a poll today that said the queen is trusted three times as much by the British public as any politician in the country.
HICKS: Does that come as a surprise?
MORGAN: No. But--
(CROSSTALK)
HICKS: But she is hugely trusted. And you know, I think the irony of that is that she has never gotten involved with politics. All of these years, these 60 years, how many prime ministers? 12? Twelve presidents. It's quite remarkable, and yet she has never passed a political judgment, a political comment. She has never got herself embroiled in anything. She has remained very aloof and very objective.
MORGAN: She met every American president apparently since she was coronated. Apart from Lyndon Johnson. He never got the ticket. I never found out why. Is there anyone watching who knows why poor old Lyndon Johnson was missed out. I don't know, it's one of those oddities. She is -- 12 prime ministers, every president since '53.
QUEST: Timing. Timing, that is the reason. Just never happened, absolutely. If you look back at it, never in the right place at the right time. I looked into it with the last state visit into the United States with the queen, back early this century, and it was just one of those things, they never got it together.
MORGAN: I wish, you know, we all covered the golden jubilee and the silver jubilee and whatever, but it seems to me there is more bunting, more flags.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Look at the queen, there she is with President Kennedy.
(CROSSTALK)
HICKS: And so beautiful. I mean, she did have this ability to dazzle and charm these statesmen and politicians, and I think, you know, she commanded this sense of awe and majesty. It is just wonderful really.
QUEST: The famous visits, of course, the very first one that she made to the United States, but this one with Ronald Reagan out west, you will remember this, Piers -- terrible weather, shocking weather. Britannia was unable to get up the West Coast. That was the famous talking hat one, where she addressed Congress.
BALDWIN: They forgot the box.
QUEST: They forgot to pull out the box. That was, of course, with President Clinton. And as for George W. Bush and his comment a face -- a smile or a look that only a mother can give, that he gave the queen.
(CROSSTALK)
HICKS: And one of her warmest relationships, of course, with your latest president. I mean, the Obamas do seem to enjoy a great warmth with the royal family. They have been over here several times.
(CROSSTALK)
QUEST: What a lot of fuss over nothing. The queen was not bothered.
(CROSSTALK)
QUEST: It was natural.
BALDWIN: Because the deal is, you are not to touch the queen, you are not to speak first to the queen, you are never to put your back to the queen.
HICKS: You are not really meant to involve eye contact with the queen unless you are invited to. But I think these things are becoming a little more relaxed, and we have certainly seen a very relaxed, happy queen out there who seems jubilant to be with her subjects. She's smiling at all of them. She barely sat down, has she? She's just been on wonderful form.
MORGAN: What you see here are so many world leaders -- I mean, there are very few people in the world who have her experience, and that's what people have looked -- when they say what is the point of the queen? This -- these pictures you are seeing, this is the point of the queen. She can put everything into global perspective and to calm prime ministers down when they maybe get overexcited. Mother Theresa, Nelson Mandela. She's met and seen them all.
(CROSSTALK)
QUEST: And what's interesting --
MORGAN: And Lady Gaga. Queen of pop meets the queen. And David Beckham, of course, our king.
HICKS: But she seems to be equally comfortable, doesn't she, with politicians, with celebrities, she really does have that knack with people.
QUEST: It is the extraordinary watching these pictures, and you think of how many people the queen met are dead.
(CROSSTALK)
QUEST: No, I mean the range over the years and the decades.
MORGAN: Shows you how long she has been on the throne.
BALDWIN: Isn't that why she wears gloves, because she's shaking so many hands?
HICKS: She does. She will only wear white or black gloves. They are handmade especially for her, and they do physically get worn out, so she has new batches made on a weekly basis.
MORGAN: And she's also very funny. That's what everyone says about the queen. I have met her about three or four times, and I went up once to Windsor Castle pointing (ph) out to the garden, saying do you enjoy those garden parties, ma'am? And she said, well, Mr. Morgan, let me put it like this. Would you enjoy 12,000 complete strangers trampling on your lawns? I was roaring with laughter, and I just think she has this natural wit about her, natural warmth. She is all things to all people.
BALDWIN: She has this sense of humor.
MORGAN: Oh, yeah.
QUEST: Oh, legendary, legendary.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Because when you look at her from an outsider perspective, she is so regal, she is so stoic. She has that British--
HICKS: One thing that is not known about her is that she is a great mimic. She can impersonate so many people, and she does have a great sense of humor. She really does.
BALDWIN: And the royal stare.
HICKS: Oh, the royal stare, yes.
QUEST: And she hates pretentiousness. She hates people who are more royal than the royals.
MORGAN: Let's go for one last break here before the grand finale, which I'm told is going to be the most spectacular part of the whole thing. So don't go away. Stay with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Welcome back to rain-soaked -- soaked isn't quite the right word. Deluged London, for the queen's diamond jubilee. It's been a classic British summer day, started promisingly and then horrendous. But our spirits remain intact and positive, and it has been, Richard Quest, a quite remarkable special day, hasn't it?
QUEST: The sort of day that we won't see the like of again. The care, attention to detail, the thought, the drama, it really is a unique occasion. And I don't use those words lightly, because I have seen quite a few royal occasion and covered them over the years, but nothing quite like this.
MORGAN: Dickie Arbiter, talk about the historical context of what happens now with the monarchy, post the queen?
ARBITER: Post the queen? It really is succession with Prince Charles. He is the next in line. The succession is assured, because he is next in line, and when he dies, William takes over.
There has been a lot of talk over the years about the queen abdicating or moving sideways once she reaches a certain age or reaches this milestone, age 60. But as she said in 1947, at the time of her 21st birthday, I declare before you all that the whole of my life, whether it be long or short -- that is the key to it, the whole of my life. She did it again for her first Christmas message in 1952 when she asked people to look ahead to help her do the job, from her coronation when she said dedication to self, the whole of her life.
MORGAN: And you are watching amazing live pictures here. The queen and the prince have been on their feet now for over an hour. Richard Quest, I saw earlier, the queen performed over 400 duties, appearances in 2010, nearly 400 last year. The woman is in her mid- 80s. It is extraordinary, isn't it?
QUEST: Indefatigable. Unbelievable. To follow on on what Dickie just said about the vow, which is all of my life, it is a vow she renewed just earlier this year before Parliament and in her jubilee message. Now, how many of us rededicate ourselves on anything six decades after we first --
MORGAN: And Dickie, talk about this sense of duty, because the queen has been the epitome of this. What does duty mean to her?
ARBITER: Duty means to her a total commitment to the job. You got to remember that she got there, to this job, because her uncle abdicated in 1936. Her father was not destined for this job. It is rather interesting when you think back, her father was second son of Edward the VII, Duke of York, he game to the throne. His father, George V, was also the Duke of York and took over when his brother died. So, there is a sense of duty. It has been instilled. She learned from her father. She believes in the monarchy, she believes in continuity. She believes in duty, and she believes in doing the job until she draws her last breath.
MORGAN: We talked earlier about her sense of humor, and I have experienced it firsthand. You know better than many people. You spent so much time with her in close proximity. She is a funny lady, isn't she?
ARBITER: She is a funny lady. She's a bit of a mimic. In my years sort of sometime ago when somebody in the crowd shouted out something, and Prince Philip sort of wanted to know what it was, and she mimicked this guy to a T. (inaudible). And she did it as the guy did it, and she does.
People complain that they don't see her smile often enough. She is not a Hollywood star. She is not there to sort of beam at everybody. She will look up, as India was saying earlier on, fly past, she'll look up, smile will come across her face . She will watch (inaudible) color, she will enjoy that. She enjoys what she is doing, but she can't go around with a beam on her face all the time.
MORGAN: And we are waiting for the big flyby. It's going to be pretty spectacular. There's a slight delay. I imagine the rain must have played a factor in slowing thing down a little bit.
Richard Quest, let's talk about Prince Philip for a moment. 90 years old, he's been the most remarkably constant consort to the queen. He's a bit -- fond (ph) a bit of the gaffes and all the rest of it, but actually underneath it, what an amazing man he is.
QUEST: The single most important part, in many ways, of the queen's reign. She has said, she said it 25 -- at the silver wedding anniversary, my husband and I, Prince Philip and I, again in the jubilee addressed the Parliament, she repeated the idea that she could not have done this without Prince Philip. He is the constant. He is the person who can tell her things that nobody else can.
ARBITER: He is a sounding board.
MORGAN: Yes.
ARBITER: Absolutely a sounding board. She doesn't discuss affairs of state with him, because she is not allowed to, but he is a sounding board. And he has been there, as Richard says quite rightly, he has been there, one pace behind her. If they are on a walkabout and you hear a burst of laughter, it is usually Prince Philip with a crowd, cracking a joke. He'll always pull children out of the crowd to take them with their poses up to the queen.
MORGAN: We're watching live pictures here from the queen's diamond jubilee. This is toward the end of the incredible thousand- boat armada that has come down the Thames today. We saw just then the queen and Prince Philip and Prince Charles, huge family gathering, almost unprecedented all on one vessel there.
ARBITER: It is unprecedented, all being together on one vessel.
QUEST: Now, looking ahead in the next 15, 20 minutes, it should have actually happened by now. Any time now, we will see the boat Symphony, which carriers the philharmonic orchestra come past under the Tower Bridge. As they go through Tower Bridge, they will play "God Save the Queen," and the fly-past will take place. Nine helicopters, led by Swordfish, and that will bring an end to the official part of the pageant. The queen is still standing.
MORGAN: There she is live.
QUEST: In this atrocious weather.
MORGAN: And you have to say, for all the logistical difficulties and the hideous rain and everything else, it has been an incredibly smooth, successful armada so far.
ARBITER: It has been absolutely amazing. As you say, the rain. What has been fortunate is the wind has held off. It has been a little bit breezy, but it would have been extremely difficult if it had been a high wind, particularly for those manpower boats. But they all made it down to Tower Bridge, they've all made it to the Mustland (ph) station. And it's incredible how this thing has gone off without a hitch, and that is down to supreme planning by Lord Salisbury and his team.
MORGAN: And just wiping away, quite literally, a pool of water on my chair. I'm not kidding you, we are literally sitting here in pools of water. Towel please, Quest.
QUEST: Yes, sir, how can I help?
MORGAN: Which gives you some idea of the absolutely ridiculous -- well -- we are literally sitting in pools of water.
QUEST: Well, would we have it any other way?
MORGAN: Yes, I would prefer it to have been like last weekend in London, which was a glorious, 80-degree summer fest. But it wasn't to be.
ARBITER: The notes are stuck together, you can't read them now, can you?
MORGAN: We are joined by a fashion expert. Is there any worse day for a woman than this?
VASSI CHAMBERLAIN, HARPER'S BAZAAR: No. I can't think of one. I think -- I feel sorry for all of them, actually. But you know what, I think this day means so much more to them.
QUEST: The emergency --
(CROSSTALK)
CHAMBERLAIN: I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this. (CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: Vassi, you're from (inaudible) design.
CHAMBERLAIN: That's right.
MORGAN: Just talk briefly again about the Duchess of Cambridge, she looks really magnificent today in this Alexander McQueen red outfit.
CHAMBERLAIN: I think it is probably the best I have ever seen her look. I think today is probably her day of glory, which sounds a strange thing to say when it is the queen's day, but I also think that perhaps had she not come along a year ago, I wonder whether the sentiment might have been quite the same.
MORGAN: I mean, I really like, and Dickie, maybe I'll come to you on this, the relationship that's unfurling now between the queen and the Duchess of Cambridge. The reason I say that is, we all remember Princess Diana so well. And that was clearly a pretty complicated relationship between them. You got a sense they never really jelled. I'm getting a sense that second time round now, with this daughter-in-law, excuse me, not daughter-in-law, grandson's wife, it is very different.
ARBITER: Well, in her eyes, William can do no wrong.
MORGAN: Yes.
ARBITER: And in her eyes, if William has chosen Kate, then he has chosen absolutely right. But what we have seen this year is the queen go out on engagement and taking Camilla, who is the wife of the next in line to the throne, and Kate, who is the second in line. And that is quite amazing. That has never happened before.
MORGAN: Well, the Camilla aspect in particular, ten years ago would have been completely unthinkable.
ARBITER: It would never have happened.
MORGAN: It shows you how far public opinion has moved to accept Camilla, and I think also to realize we couldn't again have a situation as we do with Princess Diana, where everything became so fractious and so polarizing, because in the end, that doesn't help the monarchy.
ARBITER: That doesn't help the monarchy, but it also shows, besides the public perception, it also shows how the queen has adapted to meet the needs of the 21st century, to meet the needs of the family, and embrace the family, and embracing her children, her grandchildren and their needs as well. And that is why we have had them going out on engagements together, which never happened before, and that's why we have -- what we have today is we have this marvelous spectacle on the river, tens of thousands of people lining the route. Doesn't matter about the weather. They don't care about the weather. They are there with their flags, they are there in their coats, and they are there enjoying themselves.
MORGAN: We're going to take another short break before the grand finale. It's running a little bit late, but it's understandable I think, given the atrocious weather conditions. But the fly-past will be happening. We'll see a great old World War II plane, a lot of helicopters, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra will perform. It will be something very special. So stay with CNN and we will see you soon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Our special coverage of the diamond jubilee continues in a moment. I'm Fredricka Whitfield with this breaking news out of Nigeria. Officials there say an airplane with 153 people on board has crashed in an extremely populated area of Lagos. The Dana Air flight crashed into a building and set off three house fires. The number of casualties is still unclear at this time. Of course, we will be following this story coming out of Lagos, Nigeria. A plane crash taking place there. Of course, we will update you on all the developments as soon as the news becomes available. Our special coverage of diamond jubilee will continue in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Welcome back to London for the queen's diamond jubilee. We're just hearing reports, not confirmed yet, that the grand finale flyby may have to be canceled because of the appalling weather. It has been raining very hard for the last hour, and the clouds are setting in, it's pretty foggy out there. I was talking to one of the Navy guys earlier. They did say if it got much worse, they may have to reconsider. So we're waiting on tenterhooks here. Dickie, kind of thing I guess you can't predict, but then the British weather has always been unpredictable.
ARBITER: It's been totally unpredictable. And it's unfortunate that they can't do the flyby, because it's the only participation of the Royal Navy. We got a flyby on Tuesday, which will be predominantly RAF, but today was Navy and it's the only look-in. And unfortunately, cloud is low, raining cats and dogs, visibility not good up there, and that is why they are probably going to cancel it.
MORGAN: So, Richard, will the London Philharmonic play on?
QUEST: Oh, what a question! They are going to pass us in about five or 10 minutes. A selection of national favorites. "Rule Britannia," "Land of Hope and Glory," the national anthem, we will enjoy those as they play--
MORGAN: Actually, the flyby would have been great, but actually, ending it with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, with this backdrop, the Tower Bridge, singing "Rule Britannia" and the national anthem would be pretty fantastic, wouldn't it?
ARBITER: It will be absolutely fantastic. My mind casts back to the time of the golden jubilee. We had something like a million people stretching back from Buckingham Palace all the way to Trafalgar Square, a big orchestra, and they were singing "Land of Hope and Glory" and the national anthem. It was great.
QUEST: My guess is that is the London Philharmonic that we are now seeing the pictures of, passing the London eye (ph), heading toward from Westminster now down towards--
MORGAN: That's extraordinary. You're freezing to death here, so I will need you to talk just to keep you alive.
CHAMBERLAIN: What makes you think that? A lady never betrays it.
MORGAN: What do you think of the great British spirit? There are still hundreds of thousands of people lining these streets in these ghastly conditions.
CHAMBERLAIN: I think it shows something that's always been very much part of Britain, which is we soldier on, we carry on, no matter what the circumstances. And I think it is also bringing together everything that is great about this country, which is the organization and not to be thwarted by the weather. And we are used to it, what can I say?
MORGAN: I think that is right, Dickie. I mean, these are the great British virtues. In adversity, the Brits always come up trumps in these kinds of things, as they carry on. They'd rather not stop. And the people, I find it extraordinary that so many British people are out there, and tourists I have to say as well, from all countries around the world, but are prepared to brave what are really -- if you're not here, you can't really grasp how awful it is. It is freezing cold, it is torrential rain, we are all soaked to the skin.
ARBITER: And do you know a word that we have not used this afternoon? It's patriotism. They have come out because they want to see the queen celebrate her diamond jubilee.
MORGAN: We have got breaking news. Sadly the flyby has been canceled. So, due to these awful conditions, the Royal Navy has just confirmed to us that there will be no flyby, which is very, very sad, because as Dickie Arbiter said, it would have been the Royal Navy's great chance to show off what people didn't expect from them, which is the helicopters and the plane.
QUEST: You can see the low cloud in that picture there, from the shard (ph), the skyscraper being built in London, now shrouded in the clouds, shows you how bad it is.
MORGAN: We are going to take a short break, but we will have the London Philharmonic Orchestra, they will sing "Rule Britannia." So will I, so will Richard Quest, and so we'll go on after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: Welcome back to London, or the Mediterranean Ocean, as we have renamed it in the last few seconds. You're watching pictures here from the queen's diamond jubilee. Very sadly, the grand finale flyby of the Royal Navy, with helicopters and old planes, has had to be canceled due to the low-lying cloud, the horrendous rain, and also the fact that the helicopters couldn't stay up apparently because of their fuel in these conditions for very long. So that has been canceled. But the good news is that the really special bit of the finale, which is the London Philharmonic Orchestra, on one of these grand barges, is about to start playing what will be I think a thrilling end to all of this. They are going to be playing some of those great British anthems, "Rule Britannia" and "God Save the Queen," the national anthem. It's going to be a thrilling end to what's been, despite the weather, a fantastic day.
Dickie, the queen will be, well, she will be cold. But she will be looking forward to this, because she loves her music, and it will be a great way to round things off.
ARBITER: She loves her music. It's a good way to round things off. She is enjoying this because this is people, people of the United Kingdom making an effort to help her celebrate the diamond jubilee. Despite the weather, everybody has turned out, on land, on the water as well. So, it's -- it's good for her, it's good for the UK, it's good for the people.
MORGAN: Richard, your overview of how it's gone? Do you think? I would imagine despite the flyby being canned, they will be pretty happy, wouldn't they?
QUEST: Happy? This has gone spectacularly well. I mean, the organization has been flawless; the execution has been just about perfect. And despite the weather, this has been a day that people will remember for many years.
MORGAN: But actually the weather, knowing British humor, this is actually going to lend itself to great headlines and great fun.
QUEST: That is the orchestra.
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: That looks like a mad party out there. (inaudible). Let's go to Becky Anderson, she is trapped in Piccadilly. Are you as soaked as we are, Becky?
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm here with you to the extremely damp end to what has been the most phenomenal day here in central London. This was the biggest street party the world has ever imagined. They are telling me to stop. Hey, wait a minute, I have got to keep going. It's been the most incredible day here in Piccadilly, the biggest street party, as I said, that London has ever seen. Thousands and thousands of people. Let me just give you a sense of what is going on over here. The tables are now empty, the carousel is closed down. As we close out our broadcasting, let me just bring you guys I've got here.
(MUSIC)
ANDERSON: Fantastic stuff. They have entertained the crowds all afternoon here in Piccadilly. Back to you guys. MORGAN: Thanks, Becky. And stoic work over there in Piccadilly. And actually, we are hearing the first sounds here in London, Tower Bridge. London Philharmonic Orchestra, I think it is "Land of Hope and Glory."
ARBITER: It is indeed.
Great sound coming from the river, wonderful sound.
MORGAN: So here we have the London Philharmonic Orchestra aboard a barge in torrential rain, singing, I believe "Land of Hope and Glory," a great British anthem. Could there be a more British scene? We're going to have a little break, come back and listen to more of this amazing orchestra. They have never played in conditions like this on a barge in the freezing cold, pouring rain. This is Britain at its best. See you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MORGAN: OK, so this is fantastic. This is the London Philharmonic Orchestra right behind us, sweeping towards Tower Bridge singing "Land of Hope and Glory." We should stand for this, Richard Quest.
QUEST: What a moment.
(MUSIC)
MORGAN: Fantastic.
What an amazing scene. On top of a barge, in pouring rain. Extraordinary.
QUEST: The best is yet -- the best is yet to come, as they pass.
MORGAN: What an amazing scene there of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. You can't believe how hard it is raining, and they are standing on top of a barge in these open conditions, playing wonderful music. You will never see this again, and you've never seen it before. This is crazy stuff. Dickie Arbiter, is this really happening?
ARBITER: Quite frankly, I'm speechless. Anybody in the States who's witnessed last night at the Proms (ph) will see the similarity. It is absolutely fantastic.
MORGAN: What is happening now is they are heading now under the bridge, under Tower Bridge. They will come alongside the queen's boat. And when they do that, they are going to sing the national anthem. And that will be the thrilling denouement of this whole thing. That will be when the British public in their tens, hundreds of thousands, rise as one to sing the anthem to their queen, and that will be a thrilling moment, I think, to have as a culmination to the diamond jubilee, day two.
(MUSIC) MORGAN: So now we have reached the moment, which I think is going to the most special of all. Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II on this celebration of her diamond jubilee, now being greeted by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, who must be soaked to their very bones, having just played "Land of Hope and Glory." They are about to sing we think the national anthem next, which will be a really special moment as they come alongside the great royal barge for what has been an incredible afternoon.
But nothing, I don't think, will quite be what is about to happen.
So, maybe we should just watch this and quite literally soak in the atmosphere.
(MUSIC)
MORGAN: They are singing the national anthem. I can hear them. How cold and wet must that orchestra be? What an amazing effort. They are coming alongside now the No. 1 royal barge, which has the queen, Prince Philip, Charles, Camilla, William, Harry, Duchess of Cambridge, obviously. Everybody soaked, everyone is freezing, but nobody cares, because this is Britain, this is our queen, and she is celebrating one of the great achievements in the history of monarchy anywhere in the world, 60 years on the throne. And for that, we salute her, and we thank her for her remarkable service.
They don't look as cold as us, do they, Richard Quest?
QUEST: No, they don't, and the extraordinary way in which the queen has remained above deck, with just a shawl, but has never stopped waving, smiling, along with the rest of the members of the royal family.
MORGAN: I can't imagine the London Philharmonic, Dickie Arbiter, have ever played in a situation like this anywhere in the world, can you?
ARBITER: I don't think the orchestra or the choir have ever performed like this before. It's a unique experience, it is a one-off experience. The queen, the second monarch in the history of the British monarchy to have reached a diamond jubilee, and what an achievement.
MORGAN: Now, Richard Quest, you are our musical expert, what are they playing right now?
QUEST: "Hornpipe" from "The Water Music." Handel, of course. A bit of Handel in the rain.
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: She's having a great time. We are all having a great time. Rain never stopped the British. And all the flags are still up, really remarkable, because the rain is probably right now as hard as it has been since we started. And it was pretty awful to start with.
(CROSSTALK)
QUEST: I love the way the Prince of Wales is, arms going up and down. Look at it all.
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: -- doing a little jig there.
QUEST: Well--
MORGAN: And your foot's moving. Must be the Handel jig.
ARBITER: (inaudible) actually tapping his sword on along the ground.
MORGAN: You can hear a big ovation there, a big roar from the crowd. They are loving this, because actually this has been the perfect ending, I think. Here we go. I think we are about to hear the national anthem. No, we're not.
ARBITER: I think that was before "The Hornpipe."
MORGAN: They are not going to be dampened, this orchestra, they are going to keep going. (inaudible) so what's happening, apparently, is they are just trying to get the boats properly turned so they are in perfect position for them to form (ph) directly to the queen.
I got to hand it to this lot. I mean, this is one of the most amazing images I have seen in the history of modern royalty. Especially to have a choir on the deck in the pouring rain, one of the great choirs, one of the great orchestras singing "Royal Britannia." Let's listen to this.
(MUSIC)
MORGAN: You are watching live pictures of the culmination of a remarkable 90 minutes, the queen's diamond jubilee here in London. It is pouring with rain. It has been horrendously cold, but nothing has dampened the spirits of the occasion.
It has really been something incredibly special and you see Her Majesty, the Queen there, a fitting image with a large umbrella, leaving the royal barge, followed by her long-supportive husband, Prince Philip and other senior members of the royal family.
They have had an incredible afternoon, it's gone pretty well incident-free and I think everyone has had a cracking time and there will be people all over the world watching this thinking you Brits are completely mad. And you know what, we are. But we are proud of it and we are particularly proud of our wonderful Queen.
Your majesty, thank you for 60 great years, you have been a remarkable inspiration, I think to all of us and to everyone around the world, who is part of your commonwealth and part of the empire. We are very proud to have you as our queen. And we have been very proud; I think all of us here, Dickie, Vassi, and Richard, to see -- to see our royals at their very best on this remarkable day. Richard?
QUEST: Nobody does it quite like the British and if there was ever any proof needed in these conditions, right the way down to the umbrella that Her Majesty is using. It is the famous umbrella that -- so that the public can still see her, the domed umbrella that ...
MORGAN: And Vassi, so you got to hand it to the Duchess of Cambridge, even a matching glamorous red umbrella.
CHAMBERLAIN: Absolutely. But actually, I don't know if you know that the Queen's umbrella, the rim always matches the color of her outfit.
MORGAN: You see, it's that little attention to detail. Dickie Arbiter, sum up the day for me.
ARBITER: A unique experience, a grand experience, one that only the Brits can do, come rain or shine -- and it rained and it showed it, it rained and it was cold. And I think you summed it up very well, Your Majesty, we salute you.
MORGAN: Yes, we salute you and we thank you. Come rain or shine, it rained but it shone. Thank you all very much. It has been a really special day.
I feel very proud, very honored to have been part of the CNN team today. I hope you have enjoyed it around the world. But when it came it didn't have a moment's effect on any of us.
And to these hearty souls behind us in their rain-soaked cagoules, that's what it's all about in this country, people prepared to come out in these conditions and say thank you to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, on her Diamond Jubilee.
Congratulations, Ma'am, long may you reign. And we're going to leave it -- we're going to leave you, on behalf of me and Brooke Baldwin and the team that's been supporting today, with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. I can't think of a better way to play out, the band, the choir, the orchestra, they have played on.
