An Act of Logistics

As I hustle and bustle around London this week meeting several incredible vendors who have worked on Royal Weddings and Royal Affairs of the past (blog to follow), I am awestruck each time I take a moment on the streets of London to notice the logistical monstrosity that is the plan to pull off a Royal Wedding.

Sure there are the "wedding details" - Seating Charts, Royal Protocol, Timelines for departures and arrivals, event planning for private dinners, receptions, a ceremony, dinner and a party, dressing protocols for the Abbey and for the Palace, the flowers and the FOOD! - all of them being slowly leaked by Buckingham Palace. But then also there is the task of setting up a parade to the Church and back from the Palace along the streets of London for upwards of an expected 1 million visitors.

All along the route, miles and miles of road barricade is being distributed and set-up. London is a biking city, but the rent-a-bikes have been picked up from stations around town. Scaffold structures have been erected every 100 yards or so with camera crews masked behind plywood painted "stone" to blend in with buildings. All of the back streets are filled with placed boom lifts, from which I assume cameras will be lofted tomorrow.

Today, we were walking the streets and heard the public "sound check" as the speakers strategically positioned, and often hidden were playing ceremonial music. In Trafalgar Square, half of the square has massive truss structures and erected to support speakers and screens for viewing tomorrow. Behind them, MSNBC is broadcasting live from a 20x60m (it appears) tent in front of the National Garden. In about 15 minutes we are headed to the Fox Studios - one of a dozen shooting studios rented by US and foreign press, erected as huge green structures outside Buckingham Palace, green to blend in with the trees. Everyone is positioned and ready to capture the Pomp and the Circumstance of tomorrow; Everyone is set to catch every detail and break the news of each detail of this Royal Affair.

But to the folks who will never get the credit, the team buried somewhere inside the Royal Staff or the Government who is responsible for managing all of the logistics required to pull this feat off, I tip my cap. Because the chaos is lacking drama - I am amazed at how smooth the set-up is, from my vantage point as a person on the street. Having been a part of the Republican National Convention hosted in Minneapolis/St. Paul in 2008 - I remember all of the security, the drama and the struggle of getting around. But none of the vendors we have met with have suggested this to be the case. I am sure their are challenges, but I am amazed at how easy it all feels and how close I as an everyday person can get. Changes, Road Closures, Tube issues and suggestions are all being clearly communicated. Nothing is stopping us from moving about the city in the midst of their set-up. While I am sure this is not the fist time the logistics team has planned or set-up this type of an event, they have perfected the art; it is certainly very well done. And I can't wait to see it come together tomorrow.