Where the Queen will go today
GUINNESS STOREHOUSE 10.30am
The second day of the Queen’s itinerary will begin with a trip to the Guinness Hop Store at St James’s Gate in Dublin. The Queen will be given a panoramic “windows” tour of the city in the Gravity Bar. This tour will be hosted by broadcaster and Late Late Show presenter Ryan Tubridy. At the world famous brewery, the 85-year-old monarch will be introduced to the Guinness “master brewer” who will demonstrate how to pour the perfect pint of stout.
GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS 11.15am
The Queen will meet Taoiseach Enda Kenny at Government Buildings, which is on record as being the last major building construction under British rule in Ireland. The foundation stone for the building was laid by the Queen’s predecessor, King Edward VII in 1904. Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore and Attorney General Máire Whelan will be among the members of the Cabinet present for the Merrion Street visit.
ISLANDBRIDGE Noon
The Queen will visit the War Memorial at Islandbridge. The Queen and President McAleese will lay wreaths at the memorial to the 49,400 Irish soldiers who died in the first World War. The visit to Islandbridge was requested by Buckingham Palace during preparations for the visit and is particularly important to the Queen. The royal couple will be shown Harry Clarke’s illuminated manuscripts containing names of the soldiers commemorated there.
CROKE PARK 3pm
Queen Elizabeth will make a historic visit to Croke Park, the scene of a massacre by British troops in 1920 during the War of Independence. The Queen and Prince Philip, accompanied by President McAleese and her husband Martin, will be greeted by GAA president Christy Cooney and Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan. Thirty-four children in GAA jerseys of each county, including New York and London, will line the forecourt.
DUBLIN CASTLE 7.30pm
The Queen will attend a State dinner in her honour at Dublin Castle. The black-tie event, at the symbolic former seat of British rule in Ireland, will be attended by 172 guests including British prime minister David Cameron. President Mary McAleese will make a short address concluding with a toast to the Queen. The Queen will then make a major speech on relations between the countries in what both governments have described as the diplomatic highlight of her visit.