The creator of one of the world’s greatest street parades and the descendant of a legendary wartime leader traveled to Florida on Friday, Dec. 3 to deliver a special invitation to some talented Wellington students.
Bob Bone, co-founder and executive director of London’s New Year’s Day Parade & Festival, invited the Wellington High School marching band to participate in the parade at the turn of the year 2022 to 2023 — an event that will be shown live on TV.
Bone was accompanied by Duncan Sandys, the great-grandson of former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill. Sandys serves as an ambassador for the event.
The Wellington High School marching band will have a life-changing week in the historic city, performing in the parade and immersing in a full educational program visiting museums, historic sites and places of architectural and artistic interest.
The 2023 parade will be one of the biggest in the event’s history and will be shown live across the world, including here in the United States on PBS.
Bone is co-founder of London’s New Year’s Day Parade & Festival and the London International Choral Festival. He has been at the helm of both events in every year of their existence. In recognition of his work, Bone was made an honorary member of the London Mayors’ Association in 2005, a distinction that has been bestowed on only five people in the 117-year history of the association.
The parade will have more than 10,000 performers from all corners of the globe entertaining a street audience of approximately 740,000, and a global TV audience of tens of millions.
The Wellington marching band’s performance will be made available to all TV stations in the region free of charge and will be streamed live around the world.
