400 drones were used to create a sky-sized corgi, cup of tea and the Queen’s handbag which lit up the sky above Buckingham Palace and could be seen for miles during the Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee concert.
It had been in the works for five to six months and was created by drone light show company, SKYMAGIC, who had to rehearse in an ‘off-grid location’ so not to reveal the ‘top secret show’ ahead of time.
It included a corgi, a favourite breed of the monarch’s, sat above Buckingham Palace with its tongue out and a bone by its paw.
The effects also portrayed a horse, an outline of a stamp — complete with the Queen’s face — and a note saying: ‘Thank you Ma’am’.
SKYMAGIC’s director, Patrick O’Mahony, told MailOnline that his team would usually have a week of rehearsals in the performance location, but due to the ‘top secret project’, Saturday’s performance was the only show.
‘It increases the tension and the stress when the firs time is when it’s live on the night,’ Mr O’Mahony said.
They were able to check the alignment with ‘locator drones’, but kept the performance a secret, instead rehearsing in an ‘off-grid location’ in the north of England.
Full show in one minute:
He said that his team had a lot of ‘creative freedom’ over the light show’s contents, working with the BBC and the palace to create a spectacular performance.
‘It started with a brainstorm and pencil sketches, going back and forth to agree a storyboard,’ he said. ‘We are big advocates for anything character-led, so we proposed the corgi and the teapot. If you create a loveable character, people warm to it. We were keen to adopt a playful tone, with the second half more a homage to the Queen.’
Once the show contents had been agreed, Mr O’Mahony’s team then set about animating the designs in their software, creating ‘individual way points’ for each drone.
‘Each drone has it’s own mission,’ he said. ‘There are hundreds and hundreds of drones all automated with software.’
The battery-powered machines are able to fly in ‘very windy’ weather, and operate in a ‘safe zone’ to avoid safety issues with the drones.
‘[The palace] was one of the most high-security places we have flown,’ Mr O’Mahony said.
‘Our system is secure and we have two geo fences around the drones, so that if a drone lost control, it would hit an invisible fence and lower to the ground. If it got through, there is a second fence. We were working in a big perimeter and taking off from the palace back garden, flying in a safe zone.’
While the SKYMAGIC team couldn’t disclose the cost of the performance, they explained that ‘drones are certainly a premium offering’.
The show could be seen far and wide as some commented that they could see the effects streets away from Buckingham Palace.
The display was part of a star-studded open-air concert in front of the Palace, its line-up including Sir Rod Stewart, Alicia Keys, Sir Elton John and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
The concert was the highlight of the third day of public events to mark the 96-year-old monarch’s record-breaking Platinum Jubilee with 22,000 people in attendance outside Buckingham Palace.
Top Photo, Stamp Photo: PA
Source: Mail Online