Anoint the monarch
Find someone willing to be anointed – the headteacher is ideal. Fix a length of clear drainpipe onto a board vertically and stand the whole thing upright. Draw a line somewhere near the top of the pipe. Players stand at a distance and try to throw three balls down the pipe, winning a chocolate coin for each one that succeeds. Once the balls breach the target line, the elected person gets gunged – sorry, anointed.
Coin for a coin
The Royal Mint has already unveiled the official coin effigy of King Charles III. Make a shallow wooden box and cover the top with chicken wire. Place chocolate coins on the wire and ask players to throw small, real coins at the box. If they land on a chocolate coin, they win it. Otherwise, the coins fall through to the box below.
Coronation ring hoopla
The coronation ring, known as The Wedding Ring of England, will be placed on the King’s right hand during the coronation service. Decorate six or seven big wooden sticks to be your sceptres and push them into the ground. Ask players to throw golden rings over the sceptres. Each one that succeeds wins a small prize.
Find the crown jewels
King John infamously lost the Crown Jewels in 1216. Print a map of the UK and draw a 10x10 grid over the top. Decide which square contains the crown jewels and ask people to pay £1 to guess. The winner gets a treasure of their own – 50% of the takings!
Guess the weight of the crown
The St Edward’s Crown, which will be used for the coronation service, is made of gold and semi-precious stones and weighs 2.23kg. Make your own crown, add in some less precious stones from your garden and ask participants to guess the weight.
Line of rule
Print photos or paintings of previous kings and queens on A4 and stick them onto pieces of card. Set up a washing line and pegs. Challenge players to put the sovereigns in date order. Players win a sweet for each card that’s in the correct position.
Musical thrones
The throne of England can never be vacant. Decorate some old chairs to look like thrones, give the children a crown to wear and have a game of musical thrones. Play the national anthem or find some other appropriate royal tunes. When the music stops, monarchs must grab a throne as fast as they can.
Operation Golden Orb
Named after the codename given to plans for King Charles’s coronation. Cut a hole in a piece of board large enough to fit a bucket. Place the board and bucket on their sides and ask participants to throw golden orbs (painted balls) into the bucket from a set distance. Make it more challenging by having several buckets and a different score for each.
Pin the crown on the King
Just like Pin the Tail on the Donkey. Blindfolded players must pin the crown as close to where they think the Archbishop will place it on the King’s head.
Play your cards right
Lay out four or more cards in a row. Ask players to guess whether the next card will be higher or lower. If they guess incorrectly, the game is over. Those who reach the last card win a prize. If you get a king, you get another turn. There’s nothing for a pair (not in this game).
