Odes to Beatrix draws 2.5 million viewers

A televised thank you party was held in honor of former-Queen, Princess Beatrix in the Ahoy Stadium in Rotterdam, which became the most-watched television programme yesterday. Over 2 million people watched the programme Beatrix met hart en ziel (Beatrix with heart and soul) on Nederland 1.

In the programme, 33 odes were made to Beatrix, one for every year that she was Queen. At the end, 4000 people in the Ahoy stadium sang to Beatrix. King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima were present, along with many other members of the royal family. The performances of "gewone Nederlanders" came from average Dutch society, and from all corners of the Kingdom, from Curaçao to Rouveen and Venlo. The performance was a mix of folklore, Jordanian songs, music made with milk cans (melkbussofoon), Bach, acrobatics and a specially composed song 'Onder uw hoede' ('Under your charge', a play on words as the Dutch term 'hoede' means charge, but also refers to Beatrix's fondness of hats), sung by Chantal Janzen.