Vigilance can confirm that The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh will embark on the first ever State visit by a British Head of State to the Republic of Ireland, starting today, 17th -20th May, 2011.
Vigilance’s Foreign Team gathered that the Foreign Secretary William Hague will be on the Royal entourage and he is expected to meet with his Irish counterpart on 17 May, to be followed with a press conference.
While making public Her Majesty’s State visit in March, British Ambassador to Ireland Julian King said: "The State Visit programme announced by Buckingham Palace and Áras an Uachtaráin is a wide-ranging and exciting celebration of the close ties between our two countries. Her Majesty and The Duke of Edinburgh will be able to experience at first hand the vibrant links that make our relationship with Ireland so important. This is a historic visit that also celebrates our close modern partnership."
The Royal itinerary as Vigilance learnt will include a formal welcome by President McAleese at áras an Uachtaráin, a ceremony at the Garden of Remembrance, a courtesy call on the Taoiseach at Government Buildings and a State dinner in Dublin Castle, at which both The Queen and the President will deliver speeches.
It will also include events at Trinity College Dublin, at the National War Memorial Gardens in Islandbridge, at the Guinness Storehouse and at Croke Park.
Whilst on 19 May the British Embassy will host a celebration of Her Majesty The Queen’s visit to Ireland.
Two thousand guests are expected to join The Queen as she welcomes the President to enjoy an evening of fashion, music and theatre at an iconic modern venue in the Dublin docklands.
Ambassador Julian King, who will be hosting the event on behalf of The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh, enthused: “This is the first State Visit to Ireland, our closest neighbour. We wanted to mark this historic occasion, and to reflect the huge support and interest there has been in this visit. With the help of Harry Crosbie, who is producer for the event, and John McColgan, Gerald Heffernan and Norah Casey, we have put together a programme that showcases the best of British and Irish fashion, and brings together on one stage some of the finest performers working in Ireland today. It promises to be a memorable occasion, an opportunity to celebrate The Queen’s visit, but also the love of music, the spoken word, fashion, and design that people from across our two countries share.”