The UK celebrated its National Day at Expo 2020 Dubai on Thursday with a visit by His Royal Highness Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, who addressed the first Earthshot Prize Innovation Showcase and met with His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Dubai Executive Council.
Following the Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton Relay around the Expo 2020 Dubai site, as well as the official National Day ceremony in Al Wasl Plaza in the morning, Prince William spoke at the DP World Pavilion, where it was revealed that DP World will be granting GBP 1 million to scale ground-breaking environmental solutions by two Earthshot Prize finalists – Coral Vita and Living Seawalls.
Across the Expo 2020 Dubai site throughout the day, there were numerous showcases of British culture, with a particular focus on musicians from the country.
The “Extraordinary Showcase” at the UK Pavilion featured Rugby League World Cup trophies, a British Cycling gold-medal bike, a Lowden Guitars bespoke guitar, a London Tea Exchange highlighting the world’s most expensive tea and ‘Queen of Couture Cakes’ Mich Turner showing off one of her intricate creations.
Lowden Guitars presented a host of up-and-coming UK artists at Dubai Millennium Amphitheatre, including Scottish-American folk singer Daisy Chute, Northern Irish singer Nicha, English indie band Gabriel Templar and Northern Irish singer-songwriter Conor Marcus.
At the Jubilee Stage, the Scott Wood Band and Scottish singers Anna MacDonald and Ainsley Hamill brought to life Scottish folk and contemporary music.
As darkness fell, Prince William joined dignitaries at Al Wasl Plaza, with Big Ben’s chimes and spectacular projections of British iconography taking over the heart of Expo 2020 Dubai, from London Underground trains to the Clifton Suspension Bridge, alongside eclectic performances from the Band of the Coldstream Guards, Tom Seals and John Newman.
At Dubai Millennium Amphitheatre, the Daju and British Underground concert saw more up-and-coming artists from the UK take to the stage, including music from the likes of multi-genre Minor Seventh Band, jazz, pop and hip-hop fusion artist Giya and rapper HXNTZ.
The evening was crowned with a performance by the 78-member Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, who added classical bombast to a wide variety of British-themed music, from Coldplay and Adele to Queen and The Beatles, at Jubilee Park.
Under the theme ‘Innovating for a Shared Future’, the UK Pavilion features a continuously changing collective message generated by artificial intelligence and visitor contributions. It offers an awe-inspiring glimpse into the future, showcasing leading British expertise in sectors, including artificial intelligence, machine learning and space.
National and Honour Days at Expo 2020 Dubai are moments to celebrate each of Expo’s 200-plus International Participants, shining a light on their culture and achievements and showcasing their pavilions and programming.
Running until 31 March 2022, Expo 2020 Dubai invites visitors from across the planet to join the making of a new world in a six-month celebration of human creativity, innovation, progress and culture.
