Queen turned 80, and so did her guests

女王白金汉宫宴请同龄人 共庆80华诞

Queen Elizabeth sits in the Regency Room at Buckingham Palace in London as she looks at some of the cards which have been sent to her for her 80th birthday in London in this April 19, 2006 picture. Queen Elizabeth II has invited 99 guests to Buckingham Palace last Wednesday, and she needn't to ask anyone's age. All share the queen's birth date - April 21, 1926. The queen has laid on a three-course meal for 70 women and 29 men. "It has always been a standing joke in the family that I've never been invited to the queen's birthday party. I never think it would actually come true," said Betty Kay of Doncaster in northern England, one of the invited guests. Prospective banquet guests were nominated by themselves or relatives, and 99 were chosen to represent all parts of the country. Edna Richards of Wolverhampton said she was a firm supporter of the monarchy, and admired the queen for maintaining a busy schedule. "I think she is a marvel. I don't know how she does it all. Being the same age I know how she must feel," Richards said. Amid the excitement surrounding the birthday celebrations, the queen's cousin, Margaret Rhodes, said that she is "perfectly sure" the monarch will never abdicate the throne. "It's not like a normal job, it's a job for life," she said. Buckingham Palace said Rhodes' remarks reflected the longtime position of the queen and there was no change in her decision to forgo retirement. "These are the questions that are asked around these big events," said a Buckingham palace spokeswoman. "There is no question of the queen abdicating. She will carry on as normal." (Agencies)

上周三，英国女王伊丽莎白二世邀请了99位客人到白金汉宫做客。她不用询问任何一位客人的年龄，因为所有的客人和女王都是同一天生日--1926年4月21日。女王为这70位女客和29位男客精选了三道佳肴。 家住英国北部唐克斯特市的贝蒂·凯是其中一位被邀请的客人。她说：“我以前从未被邀请参加女王的生日宴会，这在我们家里已成了一个‘由来已久’的笑料。但我绝对没有想到现在这竟然成了现实。” 想入选宴会宾客的人可以毛遂自荐，也可以由亲戚们提名。被选出的99位宾客代表英国的所有地区。 伍尔弗汉普顿的埃德娜·理查德说，她是女王的坚定拥护者，女王总是把日程安排得很满，这一点让她十分钦佩。 理查德说：“我觉得她是个奇才，我不明白她是怎样处理好这么多事情的。因为和她同龄，所以我了解她会有什么样的感受。” 生日庆祝宴会的气氛十分欢愉，女王的堂妹玛格丽特·罗德斯说，她“非常肯定”女王不会退位。 她说：“这不是一个普通的工作，而是她一辈子的工作。” 白金汉宫的有关人士说，罗德斯的话表明了女王的在位时间之长，但女王目前没有退位的打算。 白金汉宫一位发言人说：“在这些重大场合，此类问题经常会被提出来。毫无疑问，女王不会退位，她将一如既往地坚持下去。” (中国日报网站编译)

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