Members of the Honourable Artillery Company fire a gun salute in front of Tower Bridge in London on Monday, to mark the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne. Pomp, pageantry and puddings will form the centrepiece of celebrations to mark Queen Elizabeth II's 70 years on the throne, Buckingham Palace announced. The 95-year-old monarch's Platinum Jubilee begins on February 6 -- the date in 1952 when she became queen after the death of her father, King George VI. Britain's longest-serving monarch will be the only queen or king in the country's long history to have ruled for 70 years.