Former Humber Bridge Engineer reveals Queen's visit
Her Majesty the Queen performed an official ceremony in 1981
Last updated 4th Jun 2022
Douglas Strachan was the Project Engineer working on the Humber Bridge following the approval for the construction of the suspension bridge to be given the green light in 1959.
Traffic first crossed the bridge on 24th June, 1981 and on 17th July, 1981 Her Majesty the Queen officially opened it with a formal ceremony.
Douglas shook hands with the Queen when she came to open the bridge in 1981 and has kept an album of pictures from the day. He said:
“The Queen drove along then she was introduced to the dignitaries before being escorted along the bridge. We had an official lunch at the Guildhall.”
There were some unexpected moments that Douglas remembers, he said:
“Half way through the Archbishop’s prayer, which was longer than anticipated, the red arrows did a starburst plunging down and those who were praying suddenly forgot about the archbishop’s prayer and watched the red arrows going past.”
Douglas remembers thousands of people turning out for the occasion, he added:
“We anticipated 20,000 people being there on the day, We had four car parks and a grandstand for around 2,000 people that were assembled on the plaza.”