ALL AGES DELIGHTED TO MEET THE ROYAL COUPLE
All ages delighted to meet the Royal couple
PEOPLE of all ages had a chance to meet the Queen.
Among them was 92-year old Moira Bonar from Omagh a self-confessed ardent royalist, who told the Tyrone Constitution she had come out especially to see the Queen.
She had already meet Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson and the Queen Mother and now could add Queen Elizabeth II to her impressive list, she said
She added: "I have followed the Royal Family for a long time now and I thought the Queen Mother was great.
"I am a police widow and I lived through the Belfast Blitz, so I grew up in the same era. So soon after her mother's death it is great to see the Queen pay a visit to Omagh.
"She came down the steps out of the library and passed by where I was standing. I got a great view as she passed very close to me".
Ann Strong, who was with Moira, said she thought the Queen looked fantastic, "radiant and very serene".
A delighted Ethel Monteith, from Festival Park in Omagh, who is approaching her 92nd birthday said: "The Queen was lovely she looked so well and her clothes were beautiful. It has made my day to see her and I am glad she came to Omagh as part of her Golden Jubilee".
These sentiments were expressed time and time again by the crowd as many of them said they were delighted and amazed by the Royal visit.
Gerald Burns from Victoria Bridge said: "I came to Omagh to tax my car and I had no idea the Queen was to visit, so this is a story to tell when 1 get back home.
"It is good that she has come to Omagh as it will give the town a boost. I'm sure there will be many watching the news tonight and will get a shock to release that all this was happening here today ".
Delight
The Queen was not the only one to delight the crowd as HRH Prince Philip also enamoured the crowd on the walkabout as he jokingly asked some of the local schoolchildren if they were missing lessons because of the visit .
Florence Anderson, from Omagh, said: "I was thrilled when the Royal couple walked down the steps so close to me. There was someone standing beside me with a bouquet of flowers and the Duke came over and said jokingly "Who will I say these are from"? I really enjoyed their visit and I think they are a lovely couple".
Many of the schoolchildren among the crowd had been told of the visit at morning assembly and were gushing over with excitement at attending such an important event. Pupils from Omagh County Primary were delighted when they got a close up view of the Queen and Prince Philip as they walked around.
Teenagers from Omagh Academy said they were aware of the historic aspect of the visit but were disappointed that they did not get a chance to speak to the Royal couple as they would have liked to ask after the "Royal heart throb". Prince William.
At the Library, the Royal Couple had a chance to hear the cross-community choir sing.
Speaking after the visit, head of the Omagh Cross Community Choir, Darryl Simpson said: "We were very pleased to be able to perform here today as we thought it was nice to do something that is representative of both Northern Ireland and Ireland. We chose 'O Danny Boy' as the welcoming song because it is associated with everything that is good in Northern Ireland."
The chairman of the choir, Rev Kevin Mullan said its members were delighted to be part of such a memorable occasion.
"It is a real honour for the choir to perform for the Queen. They sang at the Royal Variety Concert a few years ago but today is a very special event and members of the choir have been looking forward to it since they found out they were to perform," said Fr Mullan.
Bomb site
As the Royal Party made their departure the surprise stop at the site of the 1998 bomb caught everyone unawares.
It had not been part of the scheduled itinerary, and, speaking later, Mr Michael Gallagher, chairman of the Omagh Self Help Group who lost a son in the atrocity said a phone call to the Northern Ireland Office this morning may have affected the decision to change the Queen's schedule and include the site on her itinerary.
It was obviously a decision that pleased the crowd. At the scene Melanie Forbes said "The Queen and Duke got out and looked at the site of the bomb and I thought this was a nice gesture.
Another couple happy to see the Queen acknowledge the bomb site were Godfrey and Ann Wilson, who lost their daughter Lorraine in the tragedy.
The couple, who were standing in the crowd, shook hands with the Queen and told her they were pleased to meet her.
Afterwards Godfrey said: "This visit was a surprise to us we only came into the town to do the shopping. I feel bad that the bereaved families did not get a chance to acknowledge the Queen and feel that the Northern Ireland Office just bypassed the scene and did not invite any of the families.
"It was the biggest atrocity in Northern Ireland and it would have been terrible if the Queen had just ignored the situation and passed on by. I'm glad she changed her schedule to acknowledged what happened here".
Meanwhile, local councillor Mr Oliver Gibson said he was absolutely delighted with the warm reception the Queen had received in Omagh and he was particularly pleased that her schedule had been adjusted to allow her to visit the bomb atrocity.
"It was great to see such a glorious occasion in Omagh, he added.
PEOPLE of all ages had a chance to meet the Queen.
Among them was 92-year old Moira Bonar from Omagh a self-confessed ardent royalist, who told the Tyrone Constitution she had come out especially to see the Queen.
She had already meet Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson and the Queen Mother and now could add Queen Elizabeth II to her impressive list, she said
She added: "I have followed the Royal Family for a long time now and I thought the Queen Mother was great.
"I am a police widow and I lived through the Belfast Blitz, so I grew up in the same era. So soon after her mother's death it is great to see the Queen pay a visit to Omagh.
"She came down the steps out of the library and passed by where I was standing. I got a great view as she passed very close to me".
Ann Strong, who was with Moira, said she thought the Queen looked fantastic, "radiant and very serene".
A delighted Ethel Monteith, from Festival Park in Omagh, who is approaching her 92nd birthday said: "The Queen was lovely she looked so well and her clothes were beautiful. It has made my day to see her and I am glad she came to Omagh as part of her Golden Jubilee".
These sentiments were expressed time and time again by the crowd as many of them said they were delighted and amazed by the Royal visit.
Gerald Burns from Victoria Bridge said: "I came to Omagh to tax my car and I had no idea the Queen was to visit, so this is a story to tell when 1 get back home.
"It is good that she has come to Omagh as it will give the town a boost. I'm sure there will be many watching the news tonight and will get a shock to release that all this was happening here today ".
Delight
The Queen was not the only one to delight the crowd as HRH Prince Philip also enamoured the crowd on the walkabout as he jokingly asked some of the local schoolchildren if they were missing lessons because of the visit .
Florence Anderson, from Omagh, said: "I was thrilled when the Royal couple walked down the steps so close to me. There was someone standing beside me with a bouquet of flowers and the Duke came over and said jokingly "Who will I say these are from"? I really enjoyed their visit and I think they are a lovely couple".
Many of the schoolchildren among the crowd had been told of the visit at morning assembly and were gushing over with excitement at attending such an important event. Pupils from Omagh County Primary were delighted when they got a close up view of the Queen and Prince Philip as they walked around.
Teenagers from Omagh Academy said they were aware of the historic aspect of the visit but were disappointed that they did not get a chance to speak to the Royal couple as they would have liked to ask after the "Royal heart throb". Prince William.
At the Library, the Royal Couple had a chance to hear the cross-community choir sing.
Speaking after the visit, head of the Omagh Cross Community Choir, Darryl Simpson said: "We were very pleased to be able to perform here today as we thought it was nice to do something that is representative of both Northern Ireland and Ireland. We chose 'O Danny Boy' as the welcoming song because it is associated with everything that is good in Northern Ireland."
The chairman of the choir, Rev Kevin Mullan said its members were delighted to be part of such a memorable occasion.
"It is a real honour for the choir to perform for the Queen. They sang at the Royal Variety Concert a few years ago but today is a very special event and members of the choir have been looking forward to it since they found out they were to perform," said Fr Mullan.
Bomb site
As the Royal Party made their departure the surprise stop at the site of the 1998 bomb caught everyone unawares.
It had not been part of the scheduled itinerary, and, speaking later, Mr Michael Gallagher, chairman of the Omagh Self Help Group who lost a son in the atrocity said a phone call to the Northern Ireland Office this morning may have affected the decision to change the Queen's schedule and include the site on her itinerary.
It was obviously a decision that pleased the crowd. At the scene Melanie Forbes said "The Queen and Duke got out and looked at the site of the bomb and I thought this was a nice gesture.
Another couple happy to see the Queen acknowledge the bomb site were Godfrey and Ann Wilson, who lost their daughter Lorraine in the tragedy.
The couple, who were standing in the crowd, shook hands with the Queen and told her they were pleased to meet her.
Afterwards Godfrey said: "This visit was a surprise to us we only came into the town to do the shopping. I feel bad that the bereaved families did not get a chance to acknowledge the Queen and feel that the Northern Ireland Office just bypassed the scene and did not invite any of the families.
"It was the biggest atrocity in Northern Ireland and it would have been terrible if the Queen had just ignored the situation and passed on by. I'm glad she changed her schedule to acknowledged what happened here".
Meanwhile, local councillor Mr Oliver Gibson said he was absolutely delighted with the warm reception the Queen had received in Omagh and he was particularly pleased that her schedule had been adjusted to allow her to visit the bomb atrocity.
"It was great to see such a glorious occasion in Omagh, he added.
Further Information
Publisher: TYRONE CONSTITUTION
Ref: TC/1053
Published Date: 16-May-02
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