Scroll down to watch the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Pageant live:

• Thousands gather along the Thames to get the best view of the Queen to mark her 60 years of reign

• The 1,000-strong flotilla promises to be the most spectacular nautical event in London for the past 350 years

• London Philharmonic Orchestra will be playing 'Singing in the Rain' as they travel down the river

The Queen arrived for the Diamond Jubilee river pageant wearing a stunning silver and white dress and matching coat.

The outfit has been a year in the planning, was designed by Angela Kelly and made by her small in-house Buckingham Palace team. Its colour scheme was chosen to stand out against the red, gold and purple hues of the royal barge.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall arrived at Chelsea Pier ahead of the Queen. Charles, who is patron of the pageant and first suggested the idea of a water-borne tribute to the Queen,wore his Royal Navy Admiral's ceremonial day dress uniform, while his wife was wearing an Anna Valentine coat and dress with a hat designed by Philip Teacy.

Scroll down to watch the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Pageant live

The Queen walks down the gangway to her launch wearing an outfit especially designed for the occasion by Angela Kelly

The Queen, who is celebrating her Diamond Jubilee, is joined by her husband the Duke of Edinburgh on the River Thames

The Queen, with the Duke of Edinburgh and the Duchess of Cornwall, arrives at the Jubilee River Pageant

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh prepare to sail down the River Thames

The Queen speaks with the Chelsea pensioners before she boards the The Spirit of Chartwell which will take her down the Thames

Boats gets ready for the start of the Diamond Jubilee River Pageant as the UK celebrates a Diamond Jubilee for only the second time in history

The 1,000-strong flotilla promises to be one of the most spectacular for the past 350 years

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge along with Prince Harry arrive ahead of the Queen

Prince Charles arrives at Chelsea Pier ahead of his mother, the Queen, and speaks with the Chelsea pensioners

A guard of honour formed of Chelsea Pensioners in their immaculate scarlet uniforms were lined up in front of the royal couple.
Spectators have been given some respite from the rain that threatened to dampen spirits earlier, but forecasters have predicted more wet weather later this afternoon.

Crowds have been building up along the banks of the Thames throughout the capital with a party atmosphere growing.

Charles and Camilla ventured out into the rain earlier to join a Big Jubilee Lunch street party in London's Piccadilly. The royal couple stopped to chat to revellers in the street and even sat down with them.

London Mayor Boris Johnson was upbeat from Putney Pier, declaring the rain had passed as he geed-up the crowds around him.

'I want you to know the rain has stopped, hasn't it?' the politician said, turning to a crowd behind him while being interviewed by BBC News.
He added: 'It's going to be a fantastic day, I've no doubt about that at all. We're are looking forward very much here in Putney to the kick-off, which I think is in a couple of hours time, but already the crowds are enormous here.'

Prince Charles and his wife Camilla were also joined by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Thousands of people have been eagerly waiting the arrival of the Queen with many choosing to camp overnight in the rainy weather. They used Union flag inspired tents and umbrellas to keep themselves dry while others bought camping stoves, sausages, bacon and eggs so they could have a fry up.

Rowing boats start to gather in preparation for the Queen's arrival

Crowds watch from the banks and the bridge as the boats prepare for the Queen's arrival

Crowds of people gather near Tower Bridge to see the Queen as she cruises along on the Thames

A group of women on one of the rowing boats smile as they get ready

Participants row a boat flying the Italian flag as they prepare for the 1,000-strong flotilla

Fans of the Royal Family wait beneath an umbrella in the rain near Tower Bridge ahead of the river pageant

Two women brave the cold and wait on the banks of the River Thames so they can watch the 1,000-strong flotilla to start later today

Crowds gather on Westminster Bridge, London, ahead of the start of the Diamond Jubilee river pageant

Bunny Henderson comes prepared for the dreary weather and is determined not to let it ruin her day

People take cover under their umbrellas on Westminster Bridge as images of the Queen are projected onto a screen

Many said they refuse to let the miserable weather get them down and spent the night singing and dancing in a bid to try and keep warm.

But weather forecasters are now predicting there will be breaks in the rain and have said there may even be a few rays of sunshine as the Queen is escorted down the river by a 1,000-strong flotilla to mark 60 years of her reign. The event promises to be the most spectacular nautical cerenibt in London for the past 350 years.

Karen Chen, 32 and David Ip, 31, from Streatham, south London, said the rain had not put them off coming to the river early to get a prime spot. 'We got here just after 7.30 [this morning], it would have been earlier if we thought we would have more competition. The rain actually works to our advantage,' Ms Chen said.

The pair have bagged a prime spot on a bench next to Battersea Bridge and said they were ready for the long-haul.

 

'We are wrapped up warmly and have waterproof sheets to shelter under. We have got a picnic of marmalade and cheese and pickle sandwiches and Mr Kipling cakes,' Mr Ip added.

'Today is a spectacular event, nothing would have stopped us from coming to see the boats. We are so excited about all the variety. It will only happen once in our lifetime and we will be here until the very end,' Ms Chen said.

Organisers also remain upbeat despite rain and drizzle being forecast for most of the day, with Pageant Master Adrian Evans declaring preparations were in hand.

'There is some rain around, but it has not dampened any spirits,' said Mr Evans. 'We in Britain are experts at not letting the weather spoil our fun. The London Philharmonic Orchestra will be playing Singing In The Rain as they travel down the river, and the crowd can sing along with them.

'We are all set to have one of the most spectacular pieces of river theatre that London, and the world, has ever seen. Excitement is building, and everything is ready.'

Supporters of the Queen gather in the cold weather as the Queen celebrates her Diamond Jubilee

A group of women who camped overnight celebrate as they wait for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations to start

Two women, one dressed as the Queen and another as a 'coronation chicken' go all out in celebration of the Jubilee

Surprise guests: Charles and Camilla dropped in on Britain's poshest street party today, held outside the Ritz and Fortnum & Mason on London's Piccadilly

Prince Charles, with his wife the Duchess of Cornwall, gets into the swing of things as they celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee

Forecasters have predicted that temperatures in the capital will reach a maximum of 12C and it will be cloudy and cool with occasional rain. Other parts of the country will also experience showers.

Prince Charles and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall also managed to squeeze in a visit to Piccadilly ahead of the river pageant.

They admired the display and joked and laughed with those involved. The Big Jubilee Lunch is part of the main events taking place over as part of the celebrations and aims to encourage people to get to know one another.

The water-borne extravaganza on the Thames will also be one of the highlights of the four-day Diamond Jubilee weekend with organisers hoping to recreate scenes not seen since the reign of Charles II.

Every conceivable vessel will be afloat on the Thames from kayaks, skiffs, Dunkirk little ships and dragon boats to tugs, barges, rowed shallops and passenger vessels.

At its head will be a floating belfry with each bell named after a senior member of the Royal Family.

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will be joined on The Spirit of Chartwell by the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall as well as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.

The boat has been described as a vessel 'fit for a queen' and has been decorated with nearly 10,000 flowers and was donated for use at the event by owner Philip Morrell and transformed in a project led by award-winning production designer Joseph Bennett.

Lavishly decorated with replica carvings and sporting a majestic red, gold and purple colour scheme, the vessel's design will echo the richly decorated royal barges of the 17th and 18th centuries.

It now sports an ornate, gilded prow sculpture featuring Old Father Thames, a pair of scaly, sharp-toothed classical dolphins - a symbol of the Thames - and the royal cipher at the centre. 

A lavish, red, velvet banner decorated with a version of the royal coat-of-arms made from more than half a million gold-coloured buttons hangs from the stern.

The Queen and Duke will be seated on the vessel's top deck in ornate chairs under a gold-coloured canopy.

The 64 metre-long cruiser has a top speed of 11 knots, will have rich red drapes decorating its sides and its bow will display the Queen's cipher, EIIR, below a crown with golden floral displays around it.

A young boy gets into the spirit by donning a mask of the Queen while a woman, right, sips on a cup of tea to keep her warm ahead of the celebrations taking place

Union Jack adorned tents were a favourite among those who spent the night camped along the banks of the Thames

Royal revellers wait in the rain on the South Bank of the River Thames for the start of the Diamond Jubilee

It has a luxury interior designed to evoke the grandeur of the 1929 Cote d'Azur Pullman railway carriages, complete with artefacts from the original train and great ocean liners.

Flowers from the Queen's gardens will adorn the barge and take as their theme the Commonwealth, the Queen's 1953 Coronation and the Gold State Coach.

Gardeners' World horticulturist Rachel de Thame created the floral displays which have a red, gold and purple colour scheme.

The water-borne extravaganza features a flotilla of 1,000 ships, boats, yachts and other vessels, expected to be seven and a half miles-long.

Organisers hope to recreate scenes not seen on the river for more than 300 years, since the reign of Charles II.

Chelsea pensioners will make up a Guard of Honour for the Queen, Philip, Charles and Camilla at Chelsea Pier, and a tender will take them to nearby Cadogan Pier where the royal barge will be moored with William, Kate and Harry waiting onboard.

Havengore, the vessel that carried Sir Winston Churchill's coffin during his state funeral in 1965, will be used in the pageant by the Duke of York and his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

The Princess Royal and her husband, Vice-Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, will travel on the Trinity House No 1 Boat while the Duke of Kent and Princess Alexandra will be aboard the RNLB Diamond Jubilee.

A woman huddles under her umbrella as the rain comes down in London

Union Jack bunting surrounds the tents lined up on the banks of the Thames as eager people get the best spot to see the Queen

Millions of people across the UK will be celebrating the Jubilee despite the bad weather

Mist and rain shrouds Tower Bridge and the former Royal Navy cruiser HMS Belfast on the Thames on Sunday morning

Boats start to mass on the River Thames ahead of the celebrations

Many of the boats were moored at Hammersmith Bridge ahead of the Queen's arrival this afternoon

Prime Minister David Cameron will also take part in the celebrations and will join his staff and guests for a party in Downing Street.

The event is part of the Big Jubilee Lunch - which will see thousands of neighbourly meals being staged across the country in honour of the Queen's 60-year reign.

Speaking about the Queen and the Monarchy on the BBC's Andrew Marr show he said he believed there would be less stability in Britain if the Royal family did not exist.

'I think one of the great things that a monarch brings, and particularly a Royal Family and Her Majesty the Queen personally brings, is this sense of national unity and stability, someone who the whole country can identify with,' he said.

'It doesn't matter whether people are Labour or Conservative or Liberal Democrat or can't bear any politicians. There's at the head of state someone who the whole country can revere and look up to, a great symbol of national unity, of continuity, that links British people with our institutions, with our history, with our relations with other countries, with the Commonwealth.

'All of those things help to anchor us, so I think it's a great source of strength and stability, both now and into the future.'

He also quashed the idea of the Queen abdicating in favour of her grandson the Duke of Cambridge: 'It's hard to think of ever her putting a foot wrong. 

And you get the sense with her that she will go on doing the amazing job she's done for this country as long as she possibly can and you never see any sign of her devotion getting any less.'

The street outside the official London home of the prime minister will also host charities, who have a royal patron or are supporters of the Lunch.

Peter Stewart, director of the Big Jubilee Lunch, said: 'We're thrilled Downing Street is hosting this lunch for people who are active in bringing communities together, which is what the Big Lunch is all about.'

Local branches of the Scout Association, Girlguiding UK, Age UK and Contact the Elderly will join the staff from Downing street, and the party atmosphere will be created with games, music and face painting.

The Duchess of Cornwall is patron of the event, led by the Eden Project, which aims to encourage neighbourhoods to come together to share lunch and a few hours of community, friendship and fun.

The event stems from the Big Lunch movement, which started in 2009 and which last year saw almost two million people get together in their local communities.

This year people across all 54 Commonwealth countries are being encouraged to hold their own Big Jubilee Lunch events as part of the celebrations.

Almost six million Britons plan to throw a house party this weekend for the Diamond Jubilee, a study has suggested.

Some 12 per cent of people plan to hold celebrations at home to mark the Queen's 60-year reign, spending £83 each on average, amounting to £424 million spent across the country on food, drink and decorations, Santander Insurance found.

A workman adds the final touches to the Royal Barge Gloriana in Richmond, London, ahead of today's celebrations

The Spirit of Chartwell barge will carry the Queen and members of the Royal family during the celebrations

Tall ships are moored along the River Thames ahead of Sunday's river pageant which will see 1,000 boats take part

The Gloriana, left, will be taking part in the river pageant and, right, boats sail down the Thames to a holding position near Hammersmith

Thousands of people walk along The Mall which is closed to traffic and decked with Union flags for the Diamond Jubilee weekend

Britons across the country, left in London, and right, in Cheshire, have been getting into the spirit to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee this weekend

WHAT THE QUEEN WORE ON HER SPECIAL DAY

The Queen arrived for the Diamond Jubilee river pageant wearing a stunning silver and white dress and matching coat.

The outfit has been a year in the planning and was designed by Angela Kelly and made by her small in-house Buckingham Palace team. Its colour scheme was chosen to stand out against the red, gold and purple hues of the royal barge.

It is created from white boucle, a fabric which has a fine textured feel, and threaded throughout with silk ribbon. The boucle was embroidered with gold, silver and ivory spots and embellished with Swarovski crystals to reflect the River Thames.

The outfit was finished with a silk organza frill.The Queen's hat had a swept up brim, the crown of which was made of the same material as the coat.

Details on the hat included feathers hand dyed in Buckingham Palace by one of Miss Kelly's team who spent a number of months making the whole outfit. More silk organza and Swarovski crystals were used to decorate this uniquely shaped hat.