Queen Elizabeth II held the throne for more than 70 years. In 1953, Cincinnati’s beloved television queen, Ruth Lyons, traveled to London to watch the coronation.
Lyons was one of the first pioneers of daytime television. She hosted the top-rated daytime program from 1952 to 1964. She was invited to the royal ceremony because of luck.
According to reports from The Enquirer, the British government gave NBC six seats, five of which went to the network’s top newsmen. Lyons was chosen from a pool of NBC subsidiaries.
The life of Queen Elizabeth II was portrayed in “The Crown”.
The queen was in Louisville in 2007.
Lyons also worked as a correspondent for The Enquirer. The Enquirer wrote that Lyons would speak her reactions to the royal show and then air express her recorded voice to them.
Lyons and her husband, Herman Newman, and their daughter, Candy, sent back regular dispatches about their trip to Regent Street and the ruins of London during World War II.
Although it was difficult for Americans to watch the event in Britain, it was a national event in the country. Television was still in its early stages. Before the first satellites, the networks were experimenting with trans-oceanic TV techniques.
Readers were able to see the beauty through Lyons’ reporting.
Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation from Ruth Lyons’ perspective
The Enquirer readers were given a seat inside the abbey for the coronation.
There was a moment in history of color and magnificence when Queen Elizabeth II was crowned. Wrist watches on some of the lords were not medieval.
Her descriptions are a little bit different.
Queen Elizabeth II moved into this historic pile of stone for Britain’s glorious ceremony, after her picture had graced every British home for the past month.
She wore a dress that shamed every fairy tale and a train that was ermine-edged.
When the queen took the crown and the royal jewels, she carried them with the dignity of a queen.
Lyons watched the procession.
There were autumnal colors in the air. There were carriages of every description rolling along. Her Majesty, Elizabeth II, smiling from the red velvet depths, was more magnificent than my wildest dreams had imagined.
At her side was the handsome Prince Philip, and from their royal coach they received the admiration of their people.
The world was different when the queen died than it was when she was crowned. Reporters like Lyons gave a glimpse of the day.
