Coronation weekend celebrations at London Zoo

We celebrated the Kings and Queens of the animal kingdom in honour of the Coronation in May 2023. 

From Saturday 6 – Monday 8 May 2023, zookeepers and volunteers joined the nation in celebration of The King and Queen Consort’s historic Coronation, with a jam-packed weekend of royal activities.  

Visitors discovered the Kings and Queens of the animal kingdom at lively animal talks, coming face-to-face with more than 14,000 animals; from the Queen honeybee in Tiny Giants to critically endangered Asiatic ‘lion king’ Bhanu in Land of the Lions. Kids also got stuck into crafty crown making and face-painting while grown-ups could take a guided tour exploring our historic zoo’s royal heritage. 
 
Inspired by their day of wildlife, young conservationists were also gifted a pouch of ecosystem-boosting wildflower seeds to take home, sow and watch bloom. In honour of The King - a life-long champion of wildlife and ZSL’s Vice Patron in his capacity as the Prince of Wales since 2014 - these tiny seeds will grow into new garden safehavens for millions of our country’s insects, birds and small mammals.  

Our Coronation activities have now passed, but join us for action-packed activities throughout the year: 

Upcoming events
 

London Zoo's connection with the Royal Family 

The Royal Family have been part of our story since the start, when we were granted our Royal Charter by King George IV in 1829. Since then every monarch, including the late Queen Elizabeth II, has served as our Royal Patron. Their support has made an enormous difference to our conservation work.
 
Monarchs past and present have supported and visited London Zoo, the world’s first scientific zoo, since it opened almost 200 years ago. We were a particular favourite of the young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret during their childhood and - since joining ZSL’s Exceptional Young Zoologist Club aged just 13 - The King has been a long-time supporter of ZSL, the international conservation charity behind London Zoo.