Photographer Chris Barham, who got the defining shot of the Queen on Coronation Day, dies aged 87
- Long-serving Daily Mail photographer Chris Barham has died at the age of 87
- He took famous image of the Queen and Prince Philip on Coronation Day in 1953
- Barham, who spent 30 years at the Mail, was just 20 when he snapped the image
It was a photo that encapsulated the joy of Coronation Day.
Photographer Chris Barham, who has died aged 87, captured this image of the Queen and Prince Philip on their way to Westminster Abbey in their carriage on June 2, 1953.
Mr Barham, who went on to work at the Daily Mail for 30 years, later revealed that he managed to take the picture only after convincing police officers along the route that he was working on the Queen’s orders.
Chris Barham captured this famous image of the Queen and Prince Philip on Coronation Day
He told a TV interview: ‘There were some lovely coppers from Devon and Cornwall along the route that day, and as I tried to get myself into position one asked me what I was doing.
‘I said, “I’m a famous photographer and the Queen has asked me to stand here”. He said, “Did she really say that, sir? Well, that’ll be OK then”. If he’d been from the Metropolitan Police he’d have thrown me out on my ear.’
Far from being famous, Mr Barham was a 20-year-old just starting out and was covering the Coronation for a picture agency.
Barham would go on to spend 30 years working for the Daily Mail and has died at the age of 87
He was paid five guineas and given a packet of sandwiches for the day but received a £10 bonus when his photo was used around the world.
Recalling how he snapped the image, he said: ‘I just wanted the moment where I could see them both. I waited, then… click. She was waving, the duke was smiling. That was it!’ It became a defining image of the hope and joy of the Coronation and was also used in the BBC documentary The People’s Coronation, marking the 60th anniversary of the day.
It launched Mr Barham’s Fleet Street career and he went on to photograph and meet the Queen on numerous occasions. One of his personal career highlights was meeting and photographing his hero, the jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong.
Mr Barham’s family said he died on Friday in Bexhill, East Sussex. He leaves a widow, Elke, and their daughter Suzy.