A French polisher who helped restore Windsor Castle after the devastating fire 20 years ago will be adding extra gloss to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations.<\/p>\n
In his spare time the appropriately named Adam Waters is Diving Officer of Leicester Underwater Exploration Club, (LUEC).<\/p>\n
The club, a branch of the British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC) of which Prince Charles is Patron, will be part of a historic flotilla on the Thames on June 3.<\/p>\n
Adam, who applied on behalf of the club for a place in the pageant in March last year, was overwhelmed to find out that LUEC\u2019s boat – known as Vixen – will be one of 1,000 vessels led by the Queen and members of the Royal Family aboard the Royal Barge, The Spirit of Chartwell.<\/p>\n
The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant is one of several major events being staged to mark the 60th<\/sup> year of the Queen\u2019s reign.<\/p>\n Every imaginable vessel will be taking part – from kayaks and dragon boats to the New Britannic, which carried thousands of World War II Allied soldiers to safety from the beaches of Dunkirk in June 1940.<\/p>\n Adam, 43, from Kibworth, said: \u201cI heard about it on the radio and felt it was important that our club and BSAC in general were represented\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter all, Prince Charles is BSAC\u2019s Patron and obviously the organisation is very closely connected with the water for all sorts of important reasons\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cDivers from LUEC travel north, south, east and west every year to explore the beauty of the British coast so it seemed right to me that we should apply to be involved.\u201d<\/p>\n LUEC was formed 53 years ago and with around 70 members is now the largest\u00a0BSAC dive club in Leicester.<\/p>\n In 2005 the club won the coveted BSAC Heinke Trophy which is presented annually to the BSAC branch judged to have done the most to further the interests of its members and of BSAC.<\/p>\n Alison Allan, Adam\u2019s predecessor as Club Diving Officer, said: \u201cThanks to Adam we have won a place for Vixen on the Diamond Jubilee Pageant\u00a0which is\u00a0a huge and exciting\u00a0honour for\u00a0us and has certainly sent a buzz around\u00a0our club.<\/p>\n “We will proudly fly the flag not only for LUEC but for BSAC too. Our hard-working committee will spend the coming weeks liaising and planning\u00a0for the great day.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are no more deserving people than those who quietly get on with the voluntary work\u00a0that comes with running any branch of the BSAC.<\/p>\n \u201cWe give our time freely to teach diving, organise events and do the\u00a0often dull,\u00a0run-of-the-mill administration. Gradually, the mantle is handed on to another generation of divers and\u00a0the\u00a0branch lives on. That is LUEC’s\u00a0story and I suspect many other branches work the same.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are a very family friendly club which reflects Leicester’s\u00a0multicultural community and we strive to introduce as many new\u00a0people\u00a0to the sport\u00a0of scuba diving as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2008, members of the club had their own royal celebrations when one of their members, Paul Morris, won the prestigious BSAC\u00a0Duke of Edinburgh’s\u00a0Prize\u00a0for\u00a0leading a diving expedition to Isle of Skye the year before.\u00a0 All club members who participated in the expedition were presented with their certificates at Buckingham Palace by the Duke himself and Paul was presented with the award medal, a replica of which takes pride of place in the club\u2019s display cabinet.<\/p>\n Adam is also well polished at dealing with royalty and has had his own brush with the Queen.<\/p>\n After the devastating fire at Windsor Castle in November 1992, Adam and his company Terry Waters French Polishing, set up by his father 30 years ago, were called upon to restore all the ancient, damaged wood panelling including work in the Lantern Room and St George\u2019s Chapel.<\/p>\n Adam said: \u201cWindsor castle is everything you would expect it to be. It is very beautiful and full of some wonderful English oak but everything is there for a purpose despite the fact it all looks so grand.\u201d<\/p>\n Further royal contracts have followed including Prince Andrew\u2019s Royal Lodge home in Windsor Great Park which was left to him by his late grandmother, the Queen Mother, and his company has also carried out restoration work at Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament and on the elegant and instantly recognisable carriages of the Orient Express.<\/p>\n Reflecting on his club\u2019s selection for the Thames parade, Adam said: \u201cI was overwhelmed when I finally found out we had been accepted. It really is the most terrific honour. I believe the last time the flotilla happened was around 350 years ago so it is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of something incredibly important historically.\u201d<\/p>\n Mary Tetley, BSAC chief executive, said: \u201cIt was a wonderful idea to put the dive club forward to be part of the flotilla. I am so pleased they have been successful and BSAC will be represented in this noble and historic event to mark the Queen\u2019s diamond jubilee.<\/p>\n \u201cBSAC was set up in 1953 and so we will be celebrating our diamond jubilee next year and with our own rich maritime history and association with the royal family, this news seems very fitting.\u201d<\/p>\n Adam said: \u201cI think the royals are a lovely bunch of people and the club is so proud to be part of the Queen\u2019s diamond jubilee celebrations. The hard part is going to be deciding who will go because there are only 14 places on our boat.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there will have to be a democratic ballot of some sort.<\/p>\n \u201cThose not lucky enough to get a place will no doubt be enjoying a LUEC planned trip to St Abbs in Scotland the same weekend and I\u2019m sure will catch up with\u00a0the\u00a0day’s events on the television and raise a glass to the Would you like to learn to dive or try some snorkelling? Contact Leicester Underwater Exploration Club which has regular Try Dive sessions by emailing trydive@luec.org<\/a> or visit www.luec.org<\/a><\/p>\n For more information on BSAC, go to www.bsac.com<\/a><\/p>\n
\nQueen on the 60th<\/sup> anniversary of her coronation\u201d.<\/p>\n