THE Duke of Kent paid a royal visit to East Cowes today (Thursday) for the town's bicentennial celebrations.

A host of events are taking place in East Cowes this weekend.

to celebrate the bicentenary of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's births, including a grand procession through the town, a modern day great exhibition and a music festival.

The Duke visited the RNLI inshore lifeboat centre and the Romanov memorial at Jubilee Recreation Ground, where he unveiled a bicentennial Victoria and Albert bench.

He was welcomed by Lotte Haig-Thomas, ten, who presented him with flowers from Barton Manor.

East Cowes residents had been busy preparing for the celebrations — the Hullabaloo team, WI and fire service had adorned the town with two miles of bunting.

Cllr Jane Rann, East Cowes Mayor, said: "I'm very proud, honoured and privileged to be the mayor of this town. We are so full of history."

Sarah McCarthy-Fry, finance director of GKN, which provided funding for the bench, said: "We really wanted to put something back into the community."

The Duke visited Osborne house for the opening of a new exhibition and the unveiling of a tapestry, following lunch with the curators and English Heritage chief executive, Kate Maver.

She said: "Thank you to the Duke of Kent, the Royal Collection Trust, and the team at Osborne, helping us bring to life the story of the house — a place where so many important people have been."

The tapestry, featuring scenes of Osborne House, was designed by Lin Kemp, who said she had no idea it would be unveiled by royalty.

The bicentennial celebrations continue over the weekend, starting with the opening of the Queens Trail by the mayors of Coburg and East Cowes, at Osborne House tomorrow (Friday).

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