IT was a WOW! A wonderful day celebrated by the whole of Tavistock.
The feelgood factor of the organisers and those swept up in the joyful jubilee atmosphere was almost palpable.
Dances, jubilee teas, musical entertainment ranging from brass to pop — and all culminating in a dazzling firework display to salute the Queen. It was a spectacular finale to a dazzling day. Pyrotechnics burst kaleidoscopes of colour into the night sky to the delight of the watching crowds.
And the fact such a wide spectrum of celebrations propelled the community into party mood was largely due to the vision of one man.
It was a year ago that Tavistock Lions member Graeme Ugle suggested the club organised something special for the Queen's Golden Jubilee.
Lions president Clive Pattison recalled that members were, at the time, 'a bit apprehensive' because the date was just six weeks before the carnival.
'It was Graeme's drive that got everything going. He spearheaded the event, did all the chasing and made it the success it was,' said Mr Pattison.
He believes that had the Lions not become involved there would not have been the same amount of diverse events taking place.
'It was a logistical nightmare — there were so many events played out under one giant umbrella. There was a core group of eight Lions who put an awful lot of effort into making Monday the special day it was.'
Mr Pattison officially started the celebrations by firing a flare from the top of Tavistock Viaduct at noon.
'The rain stopped at 11.59am for the mid-day flare. It began drizzling again — but that soon faded away and the weather was superb!'
Church bells rang their own celebratory peels across the town — and Tavistock's piece of the national jigsaw of golden jubilee festivities was well and truly launched.
During the day Mr Pattison visited all the events and said there was a great atmosphere everywhere.
'Everyone was enjoying themselves. It was nice to see the young and the old together — all smiling even during a shower.
'It united everybody. There was something for everyone and the response we got made it all worthwhile.'
He said despite initial anxieties over the organisational demands the Lions believed the town should have the chance to respond to the jubilee with a memorable day.
'We felt we should celebrate. I can remember the silver jubilee — the events from that still stick in my mind.
'This was nice for the younger generation to have something to remember and something for the older generation so they could show their respect for the Queen.'
He said the Lions had wanted to do a procession but received little feedback and dropped the idea through lack of interest.
Mr Pattison said he believed the sad events earlier in the year with the loss of Princess Margaret and the Queen Mother moved people to become more supportive of the Queen.
'I sensed a gathering of momentum. We were all pleasantly surprised at the number of people at all the events.
'When I saw all those people dancing in the square it was a real feelgood factor. You couldn't help get carried away with the celebrations.'
Mr Pattison said events are organised with no way of knowing how many people will turn up.
'I didn't know how many people would make the effort to turn up for the beacon and fireworks.
'At 9.30pm there was hardly anyone there. At 10pm I looked around and there were people everywhere. It was phenomenal!'
The Lions have expressed their thanks to Tavistock Town Council and the 31 Club for funding the fireworks.
And with the jubilee party an acclaimed success for the town Mr Pattison is looking positively to the not too distant future.
'If the people who enjoyed themselves so much on Monday would put the same energy into carnival day it would make this year's carnival the biggest and best ever — and there is still time!'
l More pictures on pages 14, 15, and 42 to 45.