Hucknall soldier proud to have been part of epic Coronation military parade

Liam Ross, aged 19, who serves with the Royal Anglian Regiment, proudly marched through the streets of London last Saturday as Britain did what it does best with a magnificent display of pomp and ceremony on an historic occasion.

Liam said: “We started at Waterloo Station and from there we marched to Westminster Barracks and then on to Westminster Abbey, where stood for the hour of the service and then we marched on to Buckingham Palace gardens where we waited for the King to arrive and then did the three cheers.

"It was really good to be part of what was a historic day and I was nervous beforehand because you don’t want to mess up when you know millions of people are watching you, either lining the streets or on TV around the world.

"But we were all good and it felt really good to be part of it.”

Liam and the rest of those on parade spent six weeks training and rehearsing for the big day to ensure every part of their involvement in it was perfect.

For Liam, it was his first drill assignment since he complete his military training last year at Catterick, having been posted overseas in Oman since January.

It meant he went straight into the training for the Coronation parade the day after he arrived back in the UK from the Middle East in March.

But the atmosphere and occasion of the day made the hard work all worthwhile.

He said: “It felt really good as you were marching and hearing the crowds clapping and cheering, it made me want to smile, even though we weren’t meant to.

"Walking into the gardens of Buckingham Palace was amazing, that was one of the big memories I’ll take from the day was just how big the garden area at the palace was and how we were able to fit all those military people in it with ease."

For Liam, his next assignment will be another overseas exercise next year and then it will be a case of waiting to see what the future holds for him in his military career.