Hampton Court marked the 60th anniversary of Elizabeth II's accession to the throne with a huge free Garden Party in the wonderful palace gardens on 2 June 2012 - and everyone was invited! About 16,000 people attended the event, enjoying a wide range of activities and entertainments put on by various teams and departments at Hampton Court.

The Outreach & Community Involvement team ran a very popular craft stall where thousands of people came and made crowns, flags, bunting and more, whilst hundreds of others received one of our Jubilee bags featuring facts about the Queen and the palaces printed onto it. We also decorated the many tables which people ate picnics at with special Diamond Jubilee tablecloths which were made in advance by community groups.

In the mid-afternoon over 40 children took part in the fancy dress competition (you can see the winners in the picture above), which saw prizes for Most Creative Costume, Most Historically Accurate Costume and Best Performance, with runners up in each category too. There were some super costumes and great acting from some of our young kings and queens!

It was a great day which saw the sun shine and people of all ages having a wonderful time.