Golden Jubilee Celebrations
To commemorate the 50th year reign of Queen Elizabeth II, DVHS organised a village-wide celebration to coincide with other national events in June 2002. The Society also commissioned a celebratory mug to commemorate the occasion that sold out very quickly.
Celebrations started at 11.00 am with the ‘wheelie and fancy dress parade’ from the Community Centre to The Green. The 'dressed wheelies', just one of the day's competitions, tested the creativity and imagination of the entrants as did the fancy dress, with the result of a very high standard across the board.
Villagers were invited to bring-a-long their picnics and due to the changeable June weather The Green was dotted with gazebos. DVHS provided musical entertainment encouraging dancing and sing-alongs led by professional musicians and amateur village performers. Several exhibitions were on display, games and competitions for all ages organised, the latter were judged by Local and County Councillor, David Aaronson.
Winner of the ‘fancy dress’ competition was crowned Queen of Deanshanger for the day, with a duty of cutting the celebration cake that was made by the Deanshanger Women’s Institute. The garden-on-a plate competition had lots of entries in its various categories.
The day was rounded out by singing the National Anthem and cheering Her Majesty. The celebration was enjoyed by all despite the damp and cloudy British summer weather!