Star-studded audience for Olympic opening ceremony
By JILL LAWLESSBy JILL LAWLESS, Associated Press?
?Britain's Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Britain's Prince Harry, from left, attend the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Summer Games at the Olympic Stadium in London, Friday, July 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Toby Melville, pool)
Britain's Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Britain's Prince Harry, from left, attend the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Summer Games at the Olympic Stadium in London, Friday, July 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Toby Melville, pool)
Queen Elizabeth II arrives for the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Summer Games at the Olympic Stadium in London, Friday, July 27, 2012. (AP Photo/John Stillwell, Pool)
Britain's Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, left, and his wife Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge wait for the beginning of the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games in the Olympic Stadium in London, Friday, July 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Toby Melville, pool)
Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Britain's Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge attend the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 27, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, top left, Britain's Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, center, and Britain's Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, right, watch the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 27, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
LONDON (AP) ? The Olympic opening ceremony had monarchs, presidents, prime ministers, Michelle Obama and the cast of "Downton Abbey" ? and that was just in the audience.
The ceremony itself included Muhammad Ali, Paul McCartney and David Beckham ? who drove the Olympic flame down the Thames in a speedboat. This was a decidedly A-list affair.
Among the 60,000 spectators at Olympic Stadium was Queen Elizabeth II, her husband Prince Philip and younger royals including Prince William and his wife Kate, and Prince Harry.
There was a sprinkling of screen stars, including British actors Richard E. Grant and Orlando Bloom, who stopped to take pictures with British soldiers and fans outside the stadium.
"I'm a big fan of Danny Boyle, so I'm excited to see what he's done," Bloom said.
Actor Hugh Bonneville, who plays aristocrat Lord Grantham in the costume drama "Downton Abbey," tweeted a picture of his fellow cast-members arriving at the stadium.
Across town in Hyde Park, Duran Duran, Paolo Nutini, Stereophonics and Snow Patrol played at a concert for music fans who couldn't go to the ceremony, which was shown on big screens.
The British government says more than 80 heads of state and government were in the Olympic Stadium audience, including royalty from Brunei, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.
The U.S. was represented by first lady Michelle Obama, and Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney was also on hand, a day after making himself unpopular in Britain by expressing doubts about the country's ability to pull off a successful games.
Britain proved Friday it could pull off a successful opening ceremony. Boyle's show, a 27 million pound ($42 million) spectacular titled "Isles of Wonder," drew rave reviews from live and television spectators.
Beckham, who helped bring the games to London, said the ceremony was "an amazing moment."
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Associated Press Writer Cassandra Vinograd contributed to this report.
Associated PressPeople, Places and Companies: Michelle Obama, Muhammad Ali, Paul McCartney, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Prince William, Prince Harry, Richard E. Grant, Orlando Bloom, Danny Boyle, Paolo Nutini, Mitt Romney, London, United Kingdom, United States
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