Abu Dhabi man creates cereal for royal couple

Abu Dhabi man hoping his packets of limited-edition cereal will be on the newlyweds breakfast table.

LONDON // Their most resilient friends plan to carry on celebrating at Prince Harry's "survivor's breakfast". But today, Prince William and his princess, Catherine, will be enjoying their first breakfast together as a married couple.

An Abu Dhabi man is hoping their menu will feature a couple of packets of his limited-edition "his and her" cereal: Special Kate's and Wills' Royal O's.

Usamah Chaudhary, 25, the founder of the London-based Royal Breakfast Company, was raised in Dubai, where his father practised as an eye surgeon at Zayed Military Hospital.

His Special Kate's come "Approved by Grandma" and promise to get you "Closer to Royalty with every Bite!" Wills' Royal O's aim to "Put a Monarch in your Morning!" His company has produced 1,000 packets, with each pair numbered.

"Number 1 is at Clarence House as a wedding gift to William and Kate and some of the proceeds of the sales are going to IntoUniversity and Beatbullying - two of the charities chosen by William and Kate as part of the Charitable Gift Fund they set up when they got engaged," Mr Chaudhary said.

Certainly, it was seen as the sort of tongue-in-cheek gift that would appeal to the couple's well-known sense of fun.

Mr Chaudhary, a Cambridge graduate, was at Camp Royale on Clapham Common yesterday, selling sample boxes of his cereal to the thousands who headed for this patch of South London to spend a chill night, or three, under canvas, and view the wedding on a giant screen.

They were part of the estimated one million people who flooded London yesterday to witness Britain's royal wedding, police confirmed. There were more than 5,500 street parties.

Philip and Alexandra Broadhead, both 27, an estate agent and junior doctor from Bournemouth, travelled more than140km from the south coast to Camp Royale with their 22-month-old son, Felix. For Mr Broadhead the experience was worth the trip, and a few nights of discomfort.

"Our family are having a huge garden party in Bournemouth, but we thought it would be nice for Felix to be able to tell his children that he had been in London for the royal wedding. We thought it would be wonderful to be part of it," he said.

But battling to erect a tent in the brisk winds that whipped up on the eve of the wedding was not everybody's idea of a good time. For those who wanted to get involved without getting back to nature - or what passes for it on the common - there was the more glamorous "Glamping Zone", which offered canvas overhead, and goose-feather pillows and mattresses where it mattered.

One glamper had flown first class from New Zealand, landing at Heathrow on Thursday evening, according to the zone coordinator. From there she took a helicopter to a nearby helipad, where a Range Rover waited to whisk her to Camp Royale. It was hard not to think that, with that much money to spend - the Glamp Zone accommodation alone cost £3,500 (Dh21,000) - a suite in a five-star hotel might be a more tempting prospect than a tent in Clapham.

There had been fears that Camp Royale would go the way of Glastonbury Festival two years ago. Then, torrential rain combined with thousands of people tramping over Somerset farmland turned the site into a vast mud bath.

But, after a blustery start yesterday, the sun shone and thousands of Londoners ventured onto the common to swell the numbers of the campers who had stuck it out overnight.

There were little girls dressed as princesses, tots swamped in oversized royal wedding T-shirts, groups of friends happy to have the day off, girls wearing headpieces and party dresses, guys sporting boutonnieres and couples, young and old. All eyes were turned on the big screen and most anticipated event of the year.

The first glimpse of Kate's dress was cheered. The first utterance of "I will" was met with a roar of approval. Flags were flown, the chorus sung of the couple's choice of hymn, Jerusalem, and all rose for the national anthem.

One London lawyer, Finella Fogarty, 33, was there with her mother, Fran, and naval officer fiancé Roger. She said: "I remember my uncle taking me to Diana and Charles's wedding. I was only little and he lifted me up on his shoulders.

"We went to Hyde Park for Diana's funeral. Perhaps it sounds a bit odd but I remember it was a sunny day and the atmosphere was very calm, almost magical.

"On an occasion like today's you just want to be at the heart of it - part of the atmosphere."

Theirs was a sentiment shared by many campers, each of whom paid £75 for three nights. In fact, many were looking forward to the carnival atmosphere and celebrations after the wedding almost as much as the ceremony itself.

After the balcony kiss, broadcast commentary gave way to dance music pumped out over huge speakers erected on the common. If it was a party these royal fans were hoping for, they certainly weren't disappointed.