Fit for a queen: finishing touches added to Jubilee barge

It will be one of the high points of the Diamond Jubilee weekend.

Aboard the Royal Barge, the Queen – accompanied by Prince Phillip – will lead a 1,000-strong flotilla down the River Thames during the Jubilee Pageant.

And with all the focus on the vessel, organisers are pulling out all the stops to make sure it looks stunning.

Students from the London Art School have been busy putting the finishing touches to spectacular gold-gilded sculptures.

The pieces will be added to the Spirit of Chartwell, an existing Thames cruiser which is getting a majestic makeover for the June 3 event.

It will also be fitted with velvet drapes and plush red carpets and will feature two thrones beneath a canopy for the monarch and her husband.