Pre-wedding poll shows support for royals

UK: As preparations step up for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, an opinion poll Monday showed two-thirds of British people believe the country is better off because of the royal family.

However, only 37 percent said they were “genuinely interested and excited” by Friday’s nuptials. In bright sunshine, thousands of tourists in London took advantage of the Easter Monday holiday to flock to Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace to see the two focal points of the wedding.

There was a bustling scene around the Abbey as technicians prepared equipment for the world’s media.

A 10-foot (three-metre) camera platform was being erected and dozens of TV reporters were already broadcasting to a global audience.

Opposite Buckingham Palace, a temporary stand has been built housing 22 glass-fronted TV studios, its facade painted green so that it blends in with the trees.

The prospect of the wedding appears to have given a boost to the royal family’s popularity, with 63 percent of those questioned in the ICM survey for The Guardian saying Britain would be worse off without the monarchy.

AFP