Glanusk Park was packed out on Friday, April 27 2012 in preparation for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee tour of the UK.
The entrance to the park was a sea of red, white and blue flags as Her Majesty arrived early with the Duke of Edinburgh in matching royal Range Rovers for the ‘Diamonds in the Park’ event hosted by the then Lieutenant of Powys, the Honourable Shan Legge-Bourke.
Acting as a showcase for traditional country pursuits and skills in fields on the sprawling estate near Crickhowell, the event staged attractions from fishing techniques to manual sheep shearing in honour of the royal visit.
Hundreds of schoolchildren from primary schools across Brecon and Radnorshire travelled by coach to attend the event where they sang in the pouring rain accompanied by Brecon Town Band, and despite the teeming weather, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh embarked on a walking tour of the mud-soaked fields to greet a variety of exhibitors.
These included officers and cadet volunteers from Dyfed-Powys Police, members of the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service, Brecon Mountain Rescue Team, the Armed Forces and the Powys Federation of YFCs and WIs, among many others.
The Queen also watched a fishing demonstration overlooking the River Usk and a demonstration of a manual sheep shearing before moving onto another stand where the Talybont Welsh fleece was spun by members of the Brecknock Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers.
The Queen also planted an oak tree in the grounds of Glanusk to commemorate the visit.
The celebrations concluded with the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh being driven to a waiting helicopter to fly them back to London, as the cheering crowd broke into spontaneous applause.