In less than a week, the coronation ceremony of King Charles III and the preparations of the palaces are feverish. The rehearsals of all those who will participate come and go on a daily basis. Even the king and his wife. According to press reports, the great ballroom at Buckingham Palace has been transformed into a space that resembles Westminster Abbey, and there the royal couple is training for the May 6 ceremony so that there are no unpleasant surprises during it.

Inside the temple will be more than 2000 official guests. Among them kings and heads of state. Thousands of citizens are expected from outside, while millions of television viewers from all over the world will watch the ceremony live. An estimated 300,000,000 viewers will tune in to watch the 39th coronation in the history of Westminster Abbey. A ritual whose roots go back to 1066.

According to the coronation day schedule so far, which may change during the week, we know the following: (times are Greek time)

8:00 am areas will be opened to the public along the procession route so that citizens have the opportunity to greet the King and his wife on their way from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey.

9:15 am – 10:30 am The first guests of the ceremony will begin to arrive at the security checkpoints located next to Parliament in Victoria Tower Gardens. These include over 850 community and charity representatives from across the UK and around 450 guests who have received a British Empire Medal in recognition of their contribution.

11:00 am The priests, the choir will take their place inside the Abbey.

11:30 am – 12:45 pm Heads of state, government ministers, former prime ministers, kings of other states and members of the royal family will arrive at the Abbey.

The ceremony will be attended almost entirely by the royal family of the United Kingdom. Missing will be the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, who has long said she will not attend the ceremony. Among others inside the temple will be the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, all his predecessors, the cabinet and the leader of the official opposition Sir Keir Starmer.

11:45 am The Cavalry begins to prepare to escort the procession from Buckingham Palace.

12:20 p.m The procession with the king and queen leaves the Palace for the Abbey.

12:53 p.m. The king and the royal consort will arrive at Westminster Abbey.

1:00 p.m. King Charles III and his wife enter Westminster Abbey through the Great West Gate and the ceremony begins.

2:00 p.m. A king is crowned. The Archbishop of Canterbury will crown King Charles III with the Crown of St. Edward. It is a crown made in 1660 and weighs 2.27 kg. Trumpets will immediately sound and military guns across the UK will fire into the air to welcome the king’s coronation.

3:00 p.m. The ritual is completed and the Coronation Procession begins from the Abbey to the Palace this time. Other members of the royal family will also participate in this procession.

3:33 p.m The King and his wife will arrive at Buckingham Palace through the Main Gate.

3:45 p.m. The king and his wife will proceed to the Palace gardens where military chaplains will salute them.

4:15 p.m. The king, royal consort and members of the royal family will appear on the palace balcony to greet the crowd and watch the planned air shows. The palace has not announced who exactly will appear on the balcony. It is most likely that only working members of the royal family will come out.