Westminster Abbey to keep coronation theatre open to public

The theatre, along with the coronation chair, will remain at the abbey until May 13
King Charles III is crowned with St Edward’s Crown
PA Wire
Miriam Burrell8 May 2023

The raised stage where the King was crowned inside Westminster Abbey will remain on display for another week for those eager to get up close to the yellow dais in person.

The coronation theatre is open for self-guided tours until Saturday May 13 for between £12 and £27 a ticket, according to Westminster Abbey’s website.

Royal fans will be able to view the coronation chair among other elements from the coronation service on Saturday from the Abbey’s North and South Transepts.

The Coronation Chair will remain position on the Cosmati Pavement, where the King was crowned, and the Queen’s Coronation bouquet has been laid on the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.

AP

Visitors on the self-led tours will also get to catch a glimpse of the Lady Chapel, Cloisters, Pyx Chamber, Nave, Abbey gardens and Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galliers.

Tickets are limited so enthusiasts are warned to purchase them quickly.

Right in the middle of Westminster Abbey is an area that was specifically built to be spacious enough to hold coronations. For hundreds of years the coronation theatre would have been surrounded in colour with bright wall paintings, stained-glass windows and decorated chapel screens.

The colourful Cosmati Pavement, laid down in 1268 during King Henry III’s rebuild of the Abbey, is still visible today.

The coronation chair in St George’s Chapel is one of the oldest pieces of furniture in the world. It has been the centrepiece of coronations for over 700 years when it is placed in the centre of the Abbey, in front of the High Altar.

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Coronation of Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla
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The chair was made by order of Edward I to enclose the famous Stone of Scone, which he brought from Scotland to the Abbey in 1296.

The location of the coronation ceremony is close to the Abbey’s High Altar. As part of a Holy Communion service, the coronation is where the monarch makes promises to the people as well as God.

An influx of tourists over the coronation weekend was estimated to bring a £450 million boost to the capital.

Experts estimate that more than 30,000 extra foreign visitors — equivalent to the population of a town the size of Windsor — on top of what would normally be expected visited London for the historic occasion.

In total there were forecast to be more than 100,000 overseas tourists staying in London for the crowning of King Charles and Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey on Saturday.

With hundreds of thousands more visiting from around the UK, virtually every hotel and short stay rental room in the capital was booked and prices soared.

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