The British High Commission in Brunei celebrates Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II's Birthday Party in Brunei
The British High Commission celebrated Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s 92nd birthday on Tuesday 24 April 2018 in Brunei Darussalam.
Present at the Queen's Birthday Party were Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Paduka Awang Haji Abdul Mokti bin Haji Mohd Daud and British High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam His Excellency Richard Lindsay as well as their spouses
The British High Commission celebrated Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II’s 92nd birthday on Tuesday 24 April 2018 in the Theatre at the Empire Hotel and Country Club. The theme of the Queen’s Birthday Party reception was a celebration of British creative arts, performed by local Bruneian talent. This pointed to the many creative connections between Brunei Darussalam and the United Kingdom.
Her Majesty The Queen's 92nd Birthday
In his speech, British High Commissioner, His Excellency, Richard Lindsay welcomed guests on the occasion of Her Majesty The Queen’s 92nd birthday. He highlighted the close links between the United Kingdom and Brunei Darussalam and explained the creative arts theme of the evening:.
He said:
I hope that the range of this evening’s performances will demonstrate the diversity of British music and dance – from West End musicals, chart hits, classical and ending with the pipes and drums. What is most exciting is that the performances tonight are by Brunei’s own talented local artists. Another great way to celebrate the close and enduring people to people links between our countries.
The High Commissioner also thanked Standard Chartered Bank, Jaguar Land Rover Indera Motors and SupaSave for their generous sponsorship of the evening.
Guests enjoyed British themed food and were able to view a photography exhibition of key bilateral events over the last year. To celebrate the best of British creativity, a range of British music and dance from West End theatre, chart hits and classical music was performed throughout the evening.
The Queen’s Birthday Party began with local artist Maria Grace Koh giving an ‘a cappella’ rendition of the National Anthems of Brunei and Britain. The first performance of the night was by Relentless Entertainment, a local performing arts company. They treated guests to an energetic rendition of song and dance from Matilda and Mary Poppins, both famous musicals from London’s West End, and both adaptations from books written by famous British authours.
Relentless Entertainment Brunei performed West End theatre musicals: Mary Poppins & Matilda
The second performance was a medley of British chart music – covering The Beatles, Amy Winehouse and Ed Sheeran, created and performed by TheEllewan. TheEllewan are a new local folk duo who have just released their first single on iPlayer.
Jerudong International School’s senior orchestra, Camerata then performed Edward Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1. One of the most recognisable pieces of British classical music, it is included every year in the special concert to mark “The Last Night of The Proms” in London’s Royal Albert Hall. The Proms are a series of concerts which make up the world’s largest and longest-running music festival, featuring artists and orchestras from across the world.
To add to the celebrations throughout the night, guests were able to experience what it is like to be at the Anfield Stadium through virtual reality booths provided by Standard Chartered Bank. This VR experience took viewers on a unique behind-the-scenes tour of the Liverpool Football Club home ground and they could walk on to the field and also interact with LFC Legends.
In conjunction with the Queen’s Birthday and the 70th Anniversary of the iconic Land Rover Defender, Indera Motors, the sole distributor for Jaguar and Land Rover in Brunei also proudly presented the new Range Rover Velar and Jaguar E-pace at the Queen’s Birthday Party in Brunei.
Laksamana College of Business kindly provided an iconic red telephone box to be used as a display piece for our Queen’s Birthday Party this year. Laksamana College has been a premier platform for Bruneians to experience British education. The telephone box is a symbolic representation of a decade long connection between Laksamana College of Business and 15 UK University partners.
At the end of the evening, guests received a token of appreciation from the British High Commission provided by Supa Save alongside their partners Rosario Pty Ltd UK, Petty Woods Pty Ltd UK and Waitrose.
The combined Pipes and Drums of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles (British Forces Brunei) and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces
As guests departed the event, they enjoyed a rousing finale at the entrance to the Theatre provided by the combined Pipes and Drums of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles (British Forces Brunei) and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.
Further information
Photos from the Queen’s Birthday Party can be found on our UKinBrunei Flickr.