Queen Camilla jokes with volunteers as she visits huge war memorial display
Camilla laid a wreath at the church’s First World War memorial with a note
The Queen shared a light-hearted moment during her visit to a community project in Wiltshire, quipping that volunteers must have "poppies coming out of (their) ears".
Camilla said she was "very impressed" by the Poppy Project in Corsham, a display of knitted and crocheted flowers marking the 80th anniversary of the Second World War's conclusion.
The Peacock Women’s Institute initiated the project earlier this year, aiming to create 10,000 poppies for exhibition in the town.
The initiative far surpassed its goal, collecting more than 31,000 poppies from contributors across the UK and internationally, including schools, youth groups, residential homes, and businesses.
Meeting the dedicated volunteers and WI members, Camilla described the project as a "lovely idea".
She then personally affixed the final poppy, completing a cascading arrangement of artificial flowers at St Bartholomew’s Church.
Addressing WI members, the Queen said: “It’s so lovely because it’s all the generations working together.
“You’ve got poppies coming out of your ears.”
Camilla laid a wreath at the church’s First World War memorial with a note reading: “In remembrance, Camilla R.”
Pippa Owen, secretary of the Peacock WI, said: “People have been posting (the poppies), we’ve had big packages from all over the UK, Scotland, Isle of Wight, but also from Canada, Los Angeles, Germany, Netherlands, it’s mad.
“And people just loved it because their grandfather or father might have been in the war, and it’s just brought this really nice feeling to a lot of people. It’s their act of remembrance.
“We actually were a little bit cheeky, and we wrote to (the Queen)… and then in about June or July, they said, ‘well, she might come’.”
Maggie Bowden, a member of the WI, made Camilla a knitted wreath to display at her home in nearby Raybridge.
“It’s quite an honour, actually, she thanked me twice for the wreath,” Mrs Bowden said.
The Queen also visited Martingate Shopping Centre, where a dedicated Poppy Shop was opened to provide free knitting lessons and co-ordinate community involvement.
Chris Galpin, another member of the WI, said she thought Camilla was “impressed” by the project.
“I think she was really thrilled,” she added.
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