THERE have been right royal celebrations across the district in honour of the Queen’s 90th birthday.

Both Odiham and Hook put on splendid parties for the local residents as Her Majesty’s milestone birthday was celebrated.

In Odiham, residents poured out into the High Street to get involved with the occasion and make use of all the hard work which had gone into planning the day.

Months of work from councillors and community volunteers culminated in an initially extremely wet opening to the setting up proceedings, as the team set out hundreds of tables and benches, and pinned metres and metres of bunting.

However, as the brass band struck up the first few notes the bad weather decided to take a break for the rest of the day, with the rain staying away allowing well over a thousand people to join the celebration for its duration.

In the months building up to the event, there was however, only one thought on people’s lips, how will the centrepiece cake from Odiham Cake Company look.

Following months of planning, design competitions and judging from local councillors and MPs, a design was selected and the cake was constructed, and as can be seen from the pictures, it was a truly spectacular outcome from Gareth Jones.

The stunning cake, designed by the children of Mayhill Junior School, was big enough to feed each and every one of the thousand people that turned up and perfectly reflected the occasion and the surrounding community.

Jon Hale, chairman of Odiham Parish Council, said: “To see all the community come together in this way was the purpose of the event and for me was what made Odiham’s High Street Party such a outstanding success.  

“It was a privilege to work with such a brilliant team of volunteers to organise the day, however none of it would have been possible without the amazing support of our friends at RAF Odiham.”

The local air base helped with the provision of tables and chairs for the day, as well as the setting up and cleaning up operation.

Station Commander Group Captain Philip Robinson OBE DFC gave the Loyal Toast to the Queen before leading the community in singing the national anthem.  

The singing was immediately followed by a low fly past from a RAF Odiham Chinook, timed to precision as the anthem concluded.

MP Ranil Jayawardena also joined in with the party with his family and was asked to present the prizes for the Cake Fit for a Queen Competition, while also taking the opportunity to thank the organisers of the event and praising the efforts of parish council chairman Jon Hale for his focus and drive in supporting Odiham’s High Street.

On his Facebook page, he later wrote: “fabulous effort from Odiham Parish Council, volunteers too many to name and, of course, local villagers - not least for turning out despite the BBC weather forecast!

“I was pleased to award the prizes to local children from Buryfields Infant School and Mayhill Junior School, who contributed to the design of an amazing cake that fed 600 people, made by the brilliant Odiham Cake Company.

“We were all thoroughly entertained by the Andover Town Band and very well supported by the men and women of RAF Odiham. A fabulous day!”

Over in Hook, more than 600 villagers braved the forecast showers and congregated at the aptly named Elizabeth Hall in Raven Road to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday on Sunday afternoon.

During the afternoon residents picnicked and joined in the fun activities, with a bouncy castle, craft and games for children and live music from Hook’s very own band, especially created for the occasion, playing and singing tunes through the decades.

An afternoon highlight was a special tea, sponsored by Hook’s local Tesco store, for Nonagenarians. At 4pm the formal celebration of Her Majesty’s birthday included ‘cutting the cake’ by Reverend Marion de Quidt and Martin Rudd of St John the Evangelist Hook Parish Church, singing happy birthday and the national anthem led by school children, and prayers for Her Majesty by Fr Peter Cod, Rev Marion de Quidt and David Grant, the leader of Life Church.

While Odiham was spared further rain, it was pouring down as the national anthem was sung in Hook, but as soon as David Grant said in his prayer, ‘long may she reign over us’ the rain stopped and party-goers were bathed in glorious sunshine.

Mr Grant said: “This was a fantastic turnout by the residents of Hook who wanted to pay their own tribute to Her Majesty as she celebrates her 90th birthday.

“She is a wonderful role model, her faith in God and her commitment to serving this nation through hard work is an example to us all.”