I’m not exactly a monarchist, but I must admit getting just a little excited about all the pomp and tradition of the royal family.
This week, Queen Elizabeth is launching an update to the official site of the British monarchy.
The site, which was first launched in 1997, is the place for all things British royal, including pictures of Her Majesty and the rest of the family, art from her various palaces, and historical information about the royals.
New to the site are embedded videos from the official royal YouTube channel, including one from 1940 that has the sound of the then-princess speaking on a BBC children’s show. Other videos cover her coronation and more recent activities.
(Credit: British Monarchy)
A section on the “royal household” includes everything you need to know to work at one of the palaces, including online applications for full-time positions and summer jobs at Buckingham Palace.
I spied an opening for a trainee butler and didn’t notice any requirement that you be a British subject. In case you wonder how she pays for all these employees, the section on “royal finances” details income and expenses, including the disclosure that “Head of State expenditure” for 2007 and 2008 was 40 million British pounds, or nearly $57 million.
If you find yourself in the U.K. and want to see one of the royals, there is a Google map with a mashup that shows past and future royal visits. Maybe Google should send Prince Charles an Android phone with Google’s new Latitude service, so we can track him in real time.
I spent some time on Her Majesty’s site and recorded some of its sounds, including the queen’s piper and a clip from a YouTube video of the coronation.
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