A Royal Wedding Bash in Battersea

So our invite (like yours, I imagine) got lost in the post. But that was no reason not to get down at the party of the decade.

After watching the ceremony from the comfort of my couch (personal highlights included dissecting the guests’ attire in an hour-long phone chat with my sister in Nigeria and the Battle of Britain planes flying over our back garden), I decided it was time to head out and join the fun.

Unimpressed with what Islington had to offer, the Babe posse hightailed it down to Battersea where friends had been boozing and schmoozing since 10am.

‘There’s royal weddings everywhere,’ Ezra exclaimed, spotting bunting and posters and flag-wavers on every street corner. At the top of Battersea High St, we armed ourselves with 99 flakes and pushed into the crowd.

This was a shindig of epic proportions with tables and chairs laid out, giant screen, BBC London bus, stalls selling delicious street food, kiddie rides, salsa dancing, stilt-walkers, a stage with live acts and of course party people galore.

The vibe was pure Carnival, with strangers kissing my hand, snapping my photo or asking for a lick of my ice cream. Yup, it was that kinda mood.

As dusk crept in, when the sound system was blaring out Al Green’s Let’s Stay Together in tribute to Will & Kate, and everyone was dancing and singing out of tune, it really did feel like we were the last wedding guests standing.

An emotional end to a sensational day.

Even the post-party wreckage looked like Carnival.

And although I didn’t think much of Islington’s street party spirit on the day, at least local artist Bambi (the next Banksy?) has done us proud with this wall art souvenir (corner of Liverpool Rd and Offord Rd).

On the Spot
Claudio, Miriam and Goran, age 7 months

‘We live down the road, that’s how we found out about this party. We could hear the music and we could smell the street food. It’s been great. The wedding was gorgeous, they’re a beautiful couple. We wish them all the best.”