Dame Helen Mirren pays tribute to troops’ Olympic effort
Dame Helen Mirren surprised soldiers on Saturday as she attended an event in Wapping to thank the army for their work in East London during the Olympics.
More than 2,500 troops drafted in to help with security during the Games were accommodated in the disused shopping centre Tobacco Dock.
On Sunday, a ceremony was held in Wapping Rose Gardens in recognition their work in maintaining security and integrating with members of the public during the Olympics. The event, which was open to members of the public, attracted Dame Helen Mirren, who lives in Wapping.
“As a resident I have loved having the troops here,” she said. “It has been great to see Tobacco Dock full of people and we have felt so close to what was happening in the Olympic park. It has been a very special event.”
The ceremony was also attended by Mayor of Tower Hamlets Lutfur Rahman, and Commodore Martin Atherton, the regional commander for eastern England. The pair inspected the troops accompanied by music from the Royal Marine (Portsmouth) band.
You may also want to watch:
Mayor Rahman said: “For the last three weeks soldiers have been welcome in the streets and the stations of our borough as they have gone about their duties supporting the Olympic effort.
“I was proud to salute them and our hard working staff and volunteers on behalf of Tower Hamlets - and the nation. They played their part in making the Olympic Games an enormous success.”
Most Read
- 1 Tribute to 7th Barts Health Trust worker to die of Covid-19
- 2 Airbnb house party violence leaves police officer with broken finger
- 3 Teenager found dead in Victoria Park
- 4 The Queen lends her name to Royal London’s emergency Covid wards
- 5 Driver arrested after police 'drugs patrol' stops car in Whitechapel
- 6 Drug and alcohol abuse by Tower Hamlets parents and children soars
- 7 'We need laptops for lockdown children to learn from home’ Tower Hamlets mayor urges
- 8 Disgraceful management of the pandemic
- 9 Have you seen this 52-year-old man missing from Ilford?