British celebrate Queen’s Diamond Jubilee — Dubai style

Dubai: Wrapped in Union flags and buoyed by a heightened sense of nationalism, British expatriates rang in the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee across the UAE on Friday with flair and flamboyance.

Draped in deluxe dress and bright costumes splashed with national colours of red, white and blue, expatriates waxed patriotic on the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s ascension to the throne on February 6, 1952 and the crucial stabilising role she has played over the years.

Living 5,500 kilometres from home, expats lamented that they won’t be able to personally take in Sunday’s national holiday celebrations in London at the River Thames pageant graced by the Queen. So they did the next best thing in the UAE and joined events such as the Diamond Jubilee Street Party at the Grand Hyatt on Friday.

Inside an air conditioned marquee filled with song, food and friends, Dubai resident Ben McCabe, 25, who hails from Manchester, said the sight of British families letting their hair down was a good tonic for warding off homesickness.

“The sight of so many union flags and it makes you feel like you’re back in Blighty,” McCabe said. “Being an expat is never the same as home but this does come close, there is a good community spirit here amongst expats.”

David Minchin, 31, has lived in Dubai for five years and said it is refreshing to see the outpouring of national pride.

“It’s very strange being British because its something some of us are not particularly proud of anymore,” Minchin said.

“But the jubilee is a reason to be proud again. I’m certainly not a royalist but the Queen sitting on the throne for 60 years is something we can be proud of. She’s still a wonderful ambassador for the country.”

UK expat Priscilla Dearsley said there is unity in the Queen’s reign: “We love England and the Queen when the things we love are falling away. The Queen is symbolic as a place that is no more, England as we knew it is gone. We’re celebrating the past.”

Dr John Callaghan of Cork, Ireland, has lived in Dubai for almost four years after more than a decade of working across the Middle East and said his time abroad has given him a deep sense of gratitude toward the Queen for her unwavering service.

“Monarchy is a most stabilising form of state,” he said, lauding the Queen for her historic visit to Ireland. “She reconciled with Ireland and put old animosities to bed. She is now massively popular.”

Nora Callaghan noted that Queen Elizabeth II has not only served six decades as the monarch, but also as the standard bearer of British values.

“She has set a standard for people to aspire to,” she said. “Integrity, dignity, she is all these things. She has seen so many prime ministers come and go but she has remained steadfast.”

UK expat Gerry Nagle, 55, has lived in Dubai on and off over the last two decades and noted that he is impressed that the Queen has reached such an unusual milestone.

“To see 60 years for a head of state is amazing. This has only happened twice in the British Empire, the first being Queen Victoria,” Nagle said.

“One has to congratulate a great lady who has devoted her life to the service of her people. This is a joyous occasion, these events bring us closer together.”

Mark Hamilton, 42, of Belfast, said, “I think we celebrate holidays more because we are so far away from home. It’s amplified very much so.

“One looks for an opportunity to celebrate their past and the Queen is clearly iconic, brought up to serve. I think she’s very relevant even more now.”