Princess Royal cancels visit to Bolton

9:50am Tuesday 22nd January 2013 in News

BOLTON was left disappointed today after The Princess Royal cancelled her visit to the town.

Princess Anne was due to officially open Bolton’s £30 million health, leisure and research centre Bolton One.

She was also due to visit the Royal Bolton Hospital’s £20 million neonatal and maternity centre of excellence.

The hospital visit was cancelled at about 9.30am today when a mechanical failure with Princess Anne's aircraft meant it could not take off.

Shortly after 11am, Bolton Council chief executive Sean Harris told the assembled guests, including the Mayor of Bolton, Cllr Guy Harkin, that the whole visit had been cancelled.

Princess Anne had been unable to take off from RAF Brize Norton and the decision was taken not to risk further attempts.

Earlier, Heather Edwards, the Bolton NHS Foundation Trust's head of communications, said: “We are pleased the Princess Royal will still be visiting some of our facilities at Bolton One but all the hospital staff are very disappointed that she will not be coming on this occasion as they had been looking forward to it very much. We have been told she has promised to come back later this year.”

Princess Anne has visited Bolton several times over the years.

Her first visit was in October, 1969, when the then 19-year-old royal met workers from English Calico’s Union Mill.

The weather then was icy but spirits were high as crowds lined the roads all the way from Manchester Airport to the mill to catch a glimpse of the young princess.

About 100 off-duty workers who were chosen by ballot had the chance to meet the Princess and the crowd also included two Tokyo police officers who were learning about British policing methods on a three-month stay.

In 1978, she visited the borough again, opening the Royal Bolton Hospital’s maternity unit which bears her name — the Princess Anne Maternity Unit.

And in 2006, she opened the Bolton Technical Innovation Centre, a purpose-built innovation academy for young inventors in Minerva Road, Farnworth.

Her last visit was in July, 2010, when she toured Watson Steel, which was involved in the construction of the Olympic Park for the London Olympic Games.

Today the Princess Royal was going to be met by the Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester, Warren Smith, and introduced to local dignitaries, including the Mayor and Mayoress of Bolton, Guy and Colette Harkin, council leader Cllr Cliff Morris and vice-chancellor of Bolton University, Dr George Holmes.

She was also going to meet gold medal-winning cyclist Jason Kenny, who was due to show her the Hall of Fame — an area dedicated to his achievements.

Bolton Clinical Commissioning Group chairman, Dr Wirin Bhatiani, was then going to take Princess Anne into the NHS area of Bolton One and introduce her to staff who were instrumental in setting up the facility.

She would have been met by Dr Holmes, who was to escort her to the athlete development centre.

"Friends of the University” including former Bolton Wanderers player and Honorary Doctor of the University, Fabrice Muamba, had assembled this morning to meet her.

Before the event, Cllr Harkin said: “It’s a big event. She’s going to the hospital too where she opened the maternity unit. Out of the royals she’s the one we’ve seen most of.”

Comments(36)

steveG says...
9:28am Tue 22 Jan 13

Aren't visitors banned from the Hospital?.

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oftbewildered2 says...
9:39am Tue 22 Jan 13

steveG wrote:
Aren't visitors banned from the Hospital?.
I think the Maternity Unit is considered to be a separate entity - the people there are not ill,like they are in the hospital

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xxenigmaxx says...
10:17am Tue 22 Jan 13

oftbewildered2 wrote:
steveG wrote:
Aren't visitors banned from the Hospital?.
I think the Maternity Unit is considered to be a separate entity - the people there are not ill,like they are in the hospital
"Mayor of Bolton Guy Harkin said: “It’s a big event."

for him maybe!!!!

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Rememberscarborough says...
10:53am Tue 22 Jan 13

So the cancelled visit has nothing to do with the planned protest by hospital unions then....

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angus macoatup says...
11:14am Tue 22 Jan 13

Rememberscarborough wrote:
So the cancelled visit has nothing to do with the planned protest by hospital unions then....
absolutely

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Boltonresident2012 says...
11:26am Tue 22 Jan 13

so there wasn't another plane available then???

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trish1975 says...
11:53am Tue 22 Jan 13

My disabled father-in-law had a doctor's appointment bolton one at 9.45 am, when i went to drop him of the carpark was closed and there were two traffic wardens stopping cars from going in the carpark, they were really nice and polite and said it was fine for me to go in as long as i was just dropping my inlaws of which i was, but when i came to pick them up at about 10.45 am there was a little hitler there who was really quite nasty said i could not go in the carpark and it didn't matter if my father-in-law was disabled, if it was not for me being persistant and the traffic building up behind me my father-in-law would have had to struggle to walk with his stick in the snow to somewhere i could pull up to collect him which is damed near impossible in that area.
So if the visit was cancelled at 9.30 am why were these traffic wardens not told and the carpark reopened.

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Harwood1975 says...
12:30pm Tue 22 Jan 13

they should have just stuck her in a horse box and drove her up...

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Puffin-Billy says...
1:17pm Tue 22 Jan 13

The MEN says "bad weather",
BN says "mechanical failure".
The plebs know better.

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boltonnut says...
1:22pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Phew, better never than late.

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megmaria says...
1:45pm Tue 22 Jan 13

And there was no way she could've found another way to Bolton? Cancelling on the last minute is ridiculous especially considering all the people who (for some strange reason) would have been excited for her visit. All the people that made an effort and all the expense in security etc.

She should have to pay for the money that has been spent in preparation for her visit.

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rnorris says...
2:27pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Wonder how much the preparations cost the Council Tax payers of Bolton ? Sure there was another plane.....Poor effort on her part....

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rnorris says...
2:28pm Tue 22 Jan 13

megmaria wrote:
And there was no way she could've found another way to Bolton? Cancelling on the last minute is ridiculous especially considering all the people who (for some strange reason) would have been excited for her visit. All the people that made an effort and all the expense in security etc.

She should have to pay for the money that has been spent in preparation for her visit.
fully agree.

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tony000 says...
3:59pm Tue 22 Jan 13

rnorris wrote:
megmaria wrote:
And there was no way she could've found another way to Bolton? Cancelling on the last minute is ridiculous especially considering all the people who (for some strange reason) would have been excited for her visit. All the people that made an effort and all the expense in security etc.

She should have to pay for the money that has been spent in preparation for her visit.
fully agree.
fully agree to bet this cost thousands .i thought bolton council where stuck for money .can find it when they want to

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duggy313 says...
4:06pm Tue 22 Jan 13

What a shame the people who grin themselves to death never had the opportunity to see a professional waver....don't worry though, she'll still get paid.

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duggy313 says...
4:08pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Harwood1975 wrote:
they should have just stuck her in a horse box and drove her up...
Nay!!

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Jenny_Taylia says...
4:26pm Tue 22 Jan 13

I wonder if the thought of spending the day being bull$#!£ed to and grinned at by Cliff Morris had something to do with her cancelling the visit?

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truthdebate says...
5:06pm Tue 22 Jan 13

She probably checked out the Urban Dictionary before deciding to come.
http://www.urbandict
ionary.com/define.ph
p?term=bolton
And then changed her mind.

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Browny91 says...
5:31pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Deeply saddened by this terrible news.

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Beyond News Forum says...
7:21pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Good, I couldn't give two sh*ts about the visit in the first place. It would have been a very costly security nightmare for the town. We need the cash for better things than an elderly tax vampire.

Having read the comments perhaps the first paragraph should be edited to:

'Not everybody in Bolton was bothered at all about the royal visit' not 'Bolton was left disappointed' BS!

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Beyond News Forum says...
7:23pm Tue 22 Jan 13

boltonnut wrote:
Phew, better never than late.
I need to jot that one down... hehehehe.

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dougie kay says...
8:25pm Tue 22 Jan 13

well! she ain't missed much , apart from a few self important half wits, along with a local third rate footballer, claimed by the local press as the fore bearer of the second coming.
Shame though about Jason Kenny wasting his time . the only one there who merited some respect for his success

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Comment777 says...
9:16pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Given the choice of visiting Bolton, meeting its overpaid, over-rated and corrupt public officials and opening a over blown leisure centre which will be abused by those who use it (many Boltonians are respectful people but they will not visit again the centre after being verbally abused or worse) or sitting in an inoperative aeroplane at Brize Norton I would choose the latter. She must have had a grin as wide as a horse's....

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macauley says...
10:18pm Tue 22 Jan 13

pity prince harry was not on hand to drop her off.

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187WINCHESTER says...
10:21pm Tue 22 Jan 13

I think we all know full well why this visit was cancelled don't we????

The council and them over paid, 2 faced nazis that are the boss's of Bolton nhs will have put a stop to it due to the planned protests!! How else are these people able to get their message across that what David "thatcher" Cameron is doing to our country with making cuts on the nhs & mod is completely wrong!! We ALL need to protest and MAKE them take note and to show enough is enough....TIME FOR David Thatcher to go!!!!!

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Joanna11 says...
11:22pm Tue 22 Jan 13

Wonder why you did not report that there was a protest designed to greet her at Bolton hospital. She was coming to celebrate the opening of an expanded maternity unit -only bigger because Salford's and Bury's maternity units were shut last year. And there are 500 redundancies planned at Bolton hospital in the next few months. Not much of a cause for celebration.
You even had a photographer at the protest which went ahead despite her no-show.
The biggest debate was whether she had not come because she had heard about the protest and did not want her name associated with 500 redundancies. Or was she at home making sure her horses were ok and not stolen by Tescos!

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macauley says...
11:29pm Tue 22 Jan 13

couldnt hav seen her coming in first place.

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Puffin-Billy says...
11:05am Wed 23 Jan 13

xxenigmaxx wrote:
oftbewildered2 wrote:
steveG wrote:
Aren't visitors banned from the Hospital?.
I think the Maternity Unit is considered to be a separate entity - the people there are not ill,like they are in the hospital
"Mayor of Bolton Guy Harkin said: “It’s a big event."

for him maybe!!!!
Isn't Guy Harkin the chap who wants to mass medicate us all with fluoride?
So much for his loyalty to Boltonians.

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thetrotter says...
11:30am Wed 23 Jan 13

maybe she didnt want to meet the fat controller

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Lancashire always says...
4:54pm Sat 26 Jan 13

Sorry but i quite like princess Ann she is and has been one of the most hard working royals we have and yes there will have been others that were disappointed of course if you dont like her or others just tear up your invitation or give it to someone who would appreciate it,

And were does opening a Building turn into a political argument yet again ?
Fighting must be Bolton Drugs must be bolton robbery must be Bolton Please get over yourselves and move somewhere else !

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Browny91 says...
5:02pm Sat 26 Jan 13

Lancashire always wrote:
Sorry but i quite like princess Ann she is and has been one of the most hard working royals we have and yes there will have been others that were disappointed of course if you dont like her or others just tear up your invitation or give it to someone who would appreciate it,

And were does opening a Building turn into a political argument yet again ?
Fighting must be Bolton Drugs must be bolton robbery must be Bolton Please get over yourselves and move somewhere else !
Pipe down.

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Browny91 says...
5:05pm Sat 26 Jan 13

tony000 wrote:
rnorris wrote:
megmaria wrote:
And there was no way she could've found another way to Bolton? Cancelling on the last minute is ridiculous especially considering all the people who (for some strange reason) would have been excited for her visit. All the people that made an effort and all the expense in security etc.

She should have to pay for the money that has been spent in preparation for her visit.
fully agree.
fully agree to bet this cost thousands .i thought bolton council where stuck for money .can find it when they want to
Yes, by closing yet another leisure centre - Little Lever.

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JustBecause says...
6:10pm Sun 27 Jan 13

"BOLTON was left disappointed today after The Princess Royal cancelled her visit to the town."

Well I wasn't, really couldn't give a toss!

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macauley says...
8:50pm Sun 27 Jan 13

i was realy upset she did not come......NOT.

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berushka says...
1:15pm Mon 28 Jan 13

Lancashire always wrote:
Sorry but i quite like princess Ann she is and has been one of the most hard working royals we have and yes there will have been others that were disappointed of course if you dont like her or others just tear up your invitation or give it to someone who would appreciate it,

And were does opening a Building turn into a political argument yet again ?
Fighting must be Bolton Drugs must be bolton robbery must be Bolton Please get over yourselves and move somewhere else !
agree with you and those that do not are probably union morons or footballers

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macauley says...
1:33pm Mon 28 Jan 13

can we not comment on something else.this visit was never going be.

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