Jubilee - live: Platinum Party at the Palace begins with surprise sketch of the Queen and Paddington

Crowds along The Mall in front of Buckingham Palace are celebrating a “once in a lifetime” moment as the Queen’s Jubilee parade kicked off.

Thousands have travelled from all over the UK to join the festivities in central London.

Three army veterans said they had travelled down from Aberdeenshire to celebrate the event.

Pointing to the palace, one said: “A wee wifey that lives in that house, there, and she has had that job for 70 years and she needs a wee bit of celebration, and we highlanders are here to wish her well.”

Emily Hurle, Lauren Stone and Amelia Jull, all 28, and Lauren Keith, 27, who moved to London from New Zealand, came to the Mall wearing tiaras and drinking cocktails.

“We’re here to celebrate the Queen, of course,” Ms Keith said.

Ms Hurle said: “I think she’s a fantastic leader and in 70 years she’s done exceedingly well.”

“Yup, she’s a legend. We love her,” Ms Stone added.

As the Guardsmen and officers passed by the Queen on the balcony, the monarch watched them parade as thousands lined The Mall.

The Jubilee Queen, head of the Armed Forces, carefully inspected the military from up high as she stood with her cousin, the Duke of Kent - Colonel of the Scots Guards.

The 96-year-old Queen was holding a walking stick and wearing the Guards’ Badge on her coat.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were among the guests who watched Trooping the Colour at Horse Guards.

They joined other royals including the Duchess of Cambridge and Duchess of Cornwall in the Duke of Wellington’s former office the parade ground.

The royal family are watching a six-minute flypast of more than 70 aircraft features Apache helicopters, Typhoons and The Red Arrows.

Dozens of aircraft from the Royal Navy, the Army and Royal Air Force are soaring over Buckingham Palace.

The Prince of Wales stood on the Queen’s right-hand side and the pair could be seen chatting and smiling ahead of the flypast.

Huge cheers of “hooray” erupted from the thousands of royal fans on The Mall in front of the palace.

As aircraft approached, the Queen was looking ahead and smiling.

Meanwhile, her great-grandson Prince Louis waved towards the sky and could also be seen resting his chin in his hands.

The Queen interacted with Louis, who was standing next to her on the balcony.

The young prince held his hands over his ears as the aircraft soared overhead.

The monarch smiled throughout the flypast and waved at the crowds before going back into the palace.

When the Queen made her appearance on the balcony, there was a delayed reaction from the crowds in The Mall and spectators sitting in the stands built for Saturday’s Party at the Palace.

A cheer went up when they spotted her on screens and she smiled as the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment passed the gates of Buckingham Palace.

The troopers took around five minutes to ride past and she could be seen chatting to her cousin the Duke of Kent, who had joined her on the balcony.

The Queen waved to crowds as the royal family lined up on the Buckingham Palace balcony:

The young prince could be seen holding his hands over his ears as the aircraft soared overhead.

The monarch smiled throughout the flypast and waved at the crowds before going back into the palace.

The Queen could be seen interacting with her great-grandson Prince Louis, who was standing next to her on the balcony.

You can watch the flypast here:

Sir Paul McCartney and David Beckham are among the stars celebrating the Queen as festivities for the Platinum Jubilee weekend get under way.

The Beatles star, 79, was knighted by the Queen in 1997, and shared a picture of himself with her from an event the year before as he congratulated her on her 70-year reign.

Alongside a picture on Instagram, Sir Paul wrote: “70 beautiful years of Queen Elizabeth the second. Congrats ma’ am! And thanks - Paul.”

David Beckham hailed the Queen’s reign as “remarkable” and wrote on Instagram: “Today, we celebrate our Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. 70 years of service and inspirational leadership of our country. Let’s come together and commemorate her remarkable reign with a great British party these next few days.”