17 March 2016

London Zoo Lion Exhibit Opening

The Queen, Patron of the Zoological Society of London, and The Duke of Edinburgh visited the London Zoo to open the Land of the Lions exhibit. The Queen opened the previous lion enclosure at the zoo forty years ago.
For some engagements more than others, you get the feeling that every single person involved in the planning was thinking, "Oooh, this will be a good photo op...", you know? And a good engagement overall, of course; they couldn't stop peeking behind themselves as the lions roared during the presentation.


One of Her Maj's jauntiest hats was on tap for the occasion, plus the (relatively small) Greville Scroll Brooch. We haven't seen this one since 2014, though I'm sure it gets plenty of undocumented use.

We must give the DoE his recognition too - check out his panda tie! Sure, it's a WWF tie, so that's all very appropriate for the occasion. But still, you gotta love a guy that makes sure he wears his panda tie for a trip to the zoo.


Photos: via Getty Images, ZSL video screencaps