Coronation countdown THE RISE OF QUEEN CAMILL

The doting mother sees the historic event as a chance for her offspring to shine

- Judy Kean

It's going to be the biggest day of their lives. With the countdown on to the coronation, the King and Queen Consort are preparing for one of the most significant royal events in the last century, knowing that hundreds of millions of eyes will be upon them.

Charles has had his whole life to prepare for this day and the previous experience of his investiture as Prince of Wales back in 1969 to draw upon - but for his wife Camilla, this will be an especially momentous, and possibly rather terrifying, occasion. Hopefully, having her family close by will help with any nerves.

Her children, food critic Tom Parker Bowles, 48, and art dealer Laura Lopes, 45, are expected to have prominent positions in the congregation to see their mother being crowned, and her grandchildren Lola, 16, Eliza, 15, and Freddy, Louis and Gus, all 13, are tipped to play a part too.

Sources say Camilla, 75, wanted the children - who have previously been kept out of the limelight - to be involved as a way of highlighting the fact that she and Charles have a blended family. According to some reports, the five teenagers may be tasked with holding a canopy over her as she is anointed with holy oil in one of the most sacred parts of the ceremony.

Being visible at such a grand occasion will be something new for Camilla's family. They have often attended royal events, like royal weddings and the Queen's funeral, but have stayed very much in the background, other than when Eliza was a flowergirl at the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.