Some people are super into their birthdays, some aren’t. Being born into the British Royal Family means you don’t have an option: You’re getting a parade, whether you like it or not. The monarch’s official birthday is celebrated at Trooping the Colour, an annual parade held in May or June, a tradition dating back to the 16th century. This year is the first time that the parade will salute King Charles III, on June 17. His actual birthday is November 17, but Trooping the Colour is held in the spring in hopes of better weather for the celebration, a struggle that many winter babies know all too.
This year, that whole “warmer weather” plan backfired: In rehearsals for the event over the weekend, several participating guards were overcome by the heat and passed out. Temperatures in London reached the mid-80s, and guards were dressed in full uniform, including their iconic tall bearskin hats and red tunics (fun fact: one reason they’re red is a nod to the battlefield days of yore, when the color masked blood stains) with gloves and long pants. It’s not the most warm-weather-friendly ensemble, as evidenced by the multiple stretchers deployed to cart off woozy soldiers on stretchers during the final run-through of the ceremonies. One soldier was caught on camera slowly lowering himself to the ground while playing the trombone, and appeared to continue to play from his horizontal position before he was woozily led away to recover.
Prince William oversaw the rehearsal and shared a thank you to the participating troops via Twitter. “A big thank you to every soldier who took part in the Colonel’s Review this morning in the heat,” he wrote. “Difficult conditions but you all did a really good job. Thank you. Warm weather is in full effect in London, with a forecasted high of 81 degrees for Saturday, the day of the parade, as of this writing.
According to The Mirror, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been left off the guest list for the celebration. Harry was recently in London to testify in court against the Mirror’s parent company, and weeks before that made a brief appearance at his father’s coronation ceremony.
