On the hottest day of the year so far, tourists rest on the Victoria Memorial to the front of the palace.
Palace staff busy themselves preparing for the ongoing Coronation Festival.
Rows of empty broadcast gazebos lie in the shade under the trees.
And crowd barriers are neatly tucked to one side, awaiting use.
A parked police van waits, its officers approached by a trickle of tourists for directions.
There's a flurry of excitement as a police motorbike drives by, followed by an ambulance. "Has she finally had the baby?" a woman shouts.
A steward leans over the barrier, wiping his face with his baseball cap. "We're just here to help any way we can", he explains. "We're waiting for a baby here, that's all. Waiting for a baby".
