Royal superfans camped on the streets of Windsor from Tuesday for the best spot on Prince Harry & Meghan Markle’s wedding carriage route today.
An estimated 100,000 people, more than triple Windsor’s population, were expected to cram into the cobbled streets for a glimpse of the Prince of Wales and his bride-to-be.
Schoolteacher Jo Kelly, 48, was given the Friday afternoon off to arrive early and set up camp on the road, but discovered she was not the first person when she arrived.
“I left work at 1.30pm from Eton, but people had been here since Tuesday to get a good view,” she said.
“The barriers had just gone up so we put our chairs down and it’s been fine.
“The police and security have been great, everyone is really chatty and friendly,” she added.
Also enjoying the community spirit in the historic town was Dale Worswick, 60, a flight attendant from Las Vegas, was visiting just for the royal occasion.
She said: “I came to Windsor and toured the castle last year and this was even more special.
“All my friends are so jealous!”
Despite booking a hotel room in advance, the closes room Ms Worswick could find was in Slough and had travelled in for the day.
Oz Fitzpatrick, a concierge at the Castle Hotel just one street away from the wedding chapel, expressed his surprise when the sudden surge in demand for rooms came earlier in the year.
The 23-year-old, born and raised in Windsor, said: “There was no date given so people were guessing when in May the wedding would be.
“Our rooms were all gone in the minutes after the engagement announcement.”
Mr Fitzpatrick spent his morning with a clipboard in hand, vetting everyone who came through the front door.
The Castle Hotel’s street-facing balconies were peppered with television crews pointing cameras are the wedding procession route.
He added: “We have to check it is only guests coming in and out, otherwise it would be bedlam.”
