King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s coronation will be celebrated with an array of events throughout Otago and Southland today.
Tree plantings, purple-illuminated buildings and a tea party are among the events planned.
Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich, mana whenua representatives and other dignitaries will gather for the planting of a rimu sapling in the lower botanic garden at 11am.
Mr Radich said a rimu tree was selected in consultation with mana whenua as the most ecologically appropriate native species for the site.
The Dunedin planting ceremony will be just one of many to be carried out in Otago and Southland today.
In Invercargill, there will be a planting of a rimu tree in Queens Park at 11am; Southland Mayor Rob Scott will plant a tree in Otautau at 11am; and Queenstown-Lakes Mayor Glyn Lewers will plant a tree in the Queenstown Gardens at 11am.
In Waitaki, there will be tree plantings at Oamaru, Omarama and Palmerston.
In Gore, 2500 trees will be planted next week near Hamilton Park.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced a donation of $1 million to the New Zealand charity Trees That Count, which will partner with the Department of Conservation (Doc) to plant 100,000 native trees nationwide.
"The donation will create a living legacy to benefit all New Zealanders, provide more resilience against climate change and align with King Charles’ lifelong interest in environmental conservation," Mr Hipkins said.
Other events include a pre-coronation "Right Royal" tea party in the Larnach Castle ballroom at 3pm.
The Tainui Croquet Club is hosting a fancy dress and raffle event at 11am to celebrate the royal sport, which arrived to New Zealand in 1864.
In royal style, two corgis will make an appearance at the club about 12.30pm.
Dunedin residents can also catch Toitū Otago Settlers Museum illuminated in the royal colour of purple over the weekend.
St Paul’s Cathedral will host a coronation civic service tomorrow.
Coronation timeline
9.20PM NZ time (10.20am UK time): King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla will travel to Westminster Abbey from Buckingham Palace in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach, which was built in 2012.
10pm (11am UK time): The procession is set to arrive at the abbey just before 10pm NZ time when the coronation starts. The coronation is expected to last about two hours.
The ceremony will include King Charles’ anointment by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
The King will then wear the St Edward’s Crown for the only time in his life. The crown was made for Charles II and has been worn by six previous monarchs.
The King will then take the throne, after which Queen Camilla will be anointed, crowned and enthroned.
In the final part of the service the King and Queen will take Holy Communion.
Midnight NZ time (1pm UK time): The King and Queen will then return to Buckingham Palace in the less comfortable 260-year-old Gold State Coach. They will be joined by other members of the Royal Family on the Buckingham Palace balcony to wave to crowds, which signals the end of the ceremony.
7am Monday NZ time (8pm Sunday UK time): The Coronation Concert is being held at Windsor Castle. It will feature performances from Take That, Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and opera singer Andrea Bocelli. It will also include a joint performance from The Royal Ballet, The Royal College of Music, The Royal Opera House, the Royal Shakespeare Company and The Royal College of Art. It will be broadcast in New Zealand on TVNZ 1 at 8pm on Monday.
You can tune in to watch coverage of the coronation on TVNZ 1 from 7pm NZ time tomorrow. There will also be coverage at odt.co.nz and make sure to pick up a special coronation edition of the Otago Daily Times on Monday.
