Today, the world will experience the coronation of King Charles III. This will be the first British monarch crowned in the 21st century, the historic event will be witnessed live across the world by millions.
As with all significant modern events, those who can’t attend, turn online to watch live coverage of the event and engage in conversations and reactions on social media.
Australia has a special relationship with the UK, with our head of state changing for the first time in my lifetime, in December 2022 with the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in August.
You can follow the hashtag #Coronation and include it in any conversations around the event on Twitter.
Twitter is also streaming the event live on their platform which you can watch here – https://twitter.com/i/events/1643655271783202817
Sky News UK are offering a multi-view experience of the Coronation, unfortunately, this is geo-blocked and not available outside the country although those with a VPN may have some success.
Sky customers can watch the coronation in 4K for free on Sky News channel 501 and on Sky Showcase channel 106 (7am-3pm). The Ultra HD broadcast will be available to those watching on Sky Glass, Sky Stream or Sky Q via the red button.
If you prefer a more passive watching experience, Channel Nine has a dedicated page for a wide range of content over the next 24 hours – https://www.9now.com.au/the-coronation-of-king-charles-iii.
The ABC is also streaming the event live on iView at https://iview.abc.net.au/video/NS1413V001S00
If you have Foxtel, there’s no shortage of options to watch the event. BBC UKTV, BBC News, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC all have coverage of the coronation.
Back in June 2022, the British Royal Family leveraged technology to show archival footage of Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation back in 1953. This was shown as a result of the Queen being unable to attend herself due to health conditions. The holograms were synchronized with recorded audio messages from each monarch, giving a sense of continuity and tradition to the ceremony.
One of the more controversial parts of the coronation is in relation to security. The event will be attended by large crowds and significant attendees like politicians and celebrities from the world over, including Australia’s own Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese.
At any large-scale public event, there’s always the risk that some with nefarious motivations will use the event.
The UK’s Metropolitan Police known as The Met, have been criticised for their use of biometrics. Facial recognition is being used to identify known criminals and while there were concerns raised about this technology being used to identify those who wish to protest the Monarchy, that has been dismissed by The Met.
Continuing the safety measures being deployed to keep everyone safe, drones will be deployed to monitor large crowds.
We’ve got drone capability, specialist investigation teams, security screening and search for the concert, and vehicle barriers to prevent vehicles causing a danger to the public.
Assistant Chief Constable Christian Bunt of Thames Valley Police
All of these tactics are aimed at ensuring that we can deliver a safe, secure and enjoyable event.
The coronation of King Charles was a remarkable example of how technology can enhance a traditional and solemn occasion and in an increasingly connected world, allow tens of millions across the globe who can’t physically attend, to join in the celebrations.
