More than 700 people attended an event at Epple Bay in Birchington on Sea to mark the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s coronation. It was held on Sunday, 2nd June and organised by the Parish Council for the people of the village.
On this bright and sunny day there was skateboarding, football which was organised and run by PIPELINE 
and there were various stalls run by local charities, while Thanet’s top rock band, DNA, played in the main marquee to an appreciative audience.
The refreshments and the actual lighting of the torch was admirably and professionally done by the adventure scouts under the guidance of Mrs Anne Wells MBE
Later that evening the parish beacon was lit and the large crowd spontaneously sang “God Save The Queen”.
The event was slightly marred when the beacon accidentaly caught fire during the middle of the night and tumbled to the ground, much to the consternation of Joseph La Roche, who had hand-made the beacon. Les Langley of Bruks, the local tree surgeons, volunteered to cut the top squarely off to enable the metal basket to be placed back on in the future.
Pictured below is Joseph La Roche loading the basket with logs. Final photograph is of the beacon ablaze.
