There will be little of the pomp and pageantry that usually comes with the State Opening of Parliament and the Queen’s Speech on Wednesday.
The event is one of the most colorful on the British calendar, but the June 8 snap election has left little time for Buckingham Palace to prepare the full show.
Queen Elizabeth II will lay out the incoming government’s policy agenda Wednesday after an election result left Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative Party still in power but weakened in Parliament.
Taking place just two days after the Trooping the Color event to mark the Queen’s birthday, Wednesday’s speech will be the first dressed down ceremony in more than 40 years.
The event usually involves theatrics and traditions dating back hundreds of years. The Queen generally dons a red velvet robe with a five-meter train and the Imperial State Crown, but British media reports suggest she may swap that attire for a day dress and hat.
The traditional horse-drawn carriage ride to Parliament from the Palace, which is usually accompanied by a full cavalry, will be replaced with a car journey.
Once the speech is delivered, a new parliamentary session begins. Both houses debate the content of the speech and agree a response to the Queen. The speech is voted on by the Commons, but rarely by the Lords.
This story has been corrected to reflect the scaled back nature of the State Opening of Parliament and the Queen’s Speech.
