Britain's Queen Elizabeth II's children's party

Jun 26, 2006, 18:33 GMT

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II threw a tea party for 2,000 children at Buckingham Palace yesterday (25.06.06).

The garden was transformed into a fantasy land, filled with characters from classic children's books, including Harry Potter, Postman Pat and Paddington Bear.

The children - who were selected through a ballot - were thrilled to see the much-loved Toad of Toad Hall rowing on the lake and Winnie the Pooh ambling among the trees.

According to the BBC website, they were also able to explore Mr McGregor's Garden, based on Beatrix Potter's 'Tale of Peter Rabbit' as well as a magical Fairyland.

One of the highlights of the event - which was held to mark the monarch's 80th birthday - was a play called 'The Queen's Handbag', which starred model Sophie Dahl, Ronnie Corbett and Martin Clunes.

The show, directed by Sir Trevor Nunn, saw nasty characters, such as Captain Hook and Cruella de Vil, steal the queen's handbag.

The monarch was worried because the bag contained an important speech, so she turned to mystery solvers like the Famous Five and Harry Potter for help.

They eventually recovered the speech, which the queen, who looked elegant in a blue dress, read out on stage.

She was quoted in Britain's Daily Mail newspaper as saying: 'We have been reminded that this magic of our childhood, the characters, the stories, the imagination of it all is an enduring and essential part of our culture.

'I hope that this event will encourage you and many other children who have been watching this show on TV to read some of the wonderful books from which the characters come and to discover the pleasure of reading.'

Guests later enjoyed food made by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.

Copyright 2006 BANG Media International