THE villagers of Mickleton have received a right Royal ‘thank you’ from Her Majesty the Queen after installing a stained glass window in St Lawrence’s church to commemorate the monarch’s Diamond Jubilee.

They wrote to The Queen informing her of their fundraising and celebrations and a letter came back with Her Majesty’s thanks and good wishes.

Chairman of the now disbanded Jubilee Committee, Jo Parr said: “It wasn’t until the stained glass window was dedicated by the Bishop of Tewkesbury recently that we wrote to the Queen to tell her all about our celebrations.”

Secretary of the committee and parish councillor Maureen Shears said: “The reply was actually signed by her Lady in Waiting but we were absolutely delighted to receive it. The envelope bore the Buckingham Palace crest and we will be framing it to hang in the church near the window.”

Her Majesty’s Lady-in-Waiting wrote: “The Queen thought it most kind of you to send her the booklet about the window together with the programme of celebrations held in your village to mark this very special anniversary. I am to convey Her Majesty’s good wishes to you and to everyone who took part in these events.”

Villager John Conduit thought of the idea to raise cash for the window and generous donations poured in. He said: “We held an open meeting in the village and had a wonderful response. We got permission to install the window from the church authorities and then contacted the glass maker.”

The stained glass window, created by the Cheshire Artist Bryony Benwell, cost £10,950. The Jubilee committee raised more than £7,000 of which a donation of £2,500 went towards the cost of the window. The rest paid for four days of celebrations in the village finishing with a picnic in the park and a grand firework display on the last day.