Trooping the Colour and the Royal Air Force flypast are among the UK's most beloved annual traditions. The King's Birthday Parade is scheduled for Saturday, June 13, 2026, and central London will once again become the backdrop for a 340-year-old ceremony featuring red-coated grenadier units wearing black bearskin hats.
Event Details
Trooping the Colour — the informal name for the King's Birthday Parade — will take place on Saturday, June 13. The event is expected to start at 10:30 a.m. at Horse Guards Parade in Whitehall. The King’s Company, the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, will troop their colour in front of His Majesty. Over 1,350 soldiers from the Household Division and the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery will participate, including 300 musicians from the Massed Bands and another 250 service personnel lining the procession route.
Once the ceremony concludes, senior members of the Royal Family will assemble on the Buckingham Palace balcony while thousands of patriotic Brits wave Union Jack flags along The Mall in anticipation of the Royal Air Force flypast.
History of Trooping the Colour
Trooping the Colour evolved from historic battlefield drills that monarchs carried out in the days of warfare. The first ceremonial event took place in the 1680s when King Charles II inspected the uniforms of his grenadiers. The event became associated with the sovereign's official birthday in 1748 during the reign of George II, but it was his grandson, George III, who made it an annual event in 1760.
The current format dates back to 1889 and has remained largely unchanged. Queen Victoria famously shunned public duties after her husband's death and attended only once, in 1895. Other monarchs have observed it annually, typically on the second or third Saturday of June. Queen Elizabeth II attended every year of her reign except 1955 due to a national rail strike. From 1969 to 1986, she rode on horseback but used a carriage from 1987. King Charles III briefly reverted to horseback in 2023 before switching back to a carriage in 2025.
Timings
The parade begins at 10:30 a.m. at Horse Guards Parade. The King’s Company will troop their colour, followed by the Royal Air Force flypast. The ceremony finishes around 12:25 p.m., and the flypast is expected at approximately 1:00 p.m.
King's Birthday Flypast
Iconic aircraft will fly over landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, The Mall, and St. James's Park. While formal confirmation of the planes is pending, a rehearsal on June 2 featured a Chinook, Phenom, A400M Atlas, C-17 Globemaster, Voyager, Typhoon, Poseidon, two additional Typhoons, and two F-35B Lightnings. The planes take off from East Anglia at 11:00 a.m., fly over the North Sea, and head for Lowestoft, Great Yarmouth, and Southwold, then over Ipswich, Colchester, Chelmsford, and London, before heading west over Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, and Oxfordshire.
Best Places to Watch
Spectators planning to view the parade in person are advised to stand on The Mall or on the edge of St James's Park overlooking Horse Guards Parade from 9:00 a.m. However, the view may be partially obstructed by troops. Those unable to attend can watch live on the BBC.
Trooping the Colour takes place at Horse Guards Parade at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, followed by the Royal Air Force flypast.
