It seems that when it comes to waiting for the completion of home renovations, Britain’s Royal Family is no different than the rest of us.

According to an article in this morning’s Daily Telegraph (bottom of Pg. 3, 15 June 2020), The Queen has been granted permission to repair a leaky north roof at Buckingham Palace, a problem first identified 200 years ago.

According to the Telegraph article, the north range of Buck House dates back to a the second major re-development. That work took place between 1820 and 1837.

The architect, John Nash, was sacked for over-spending. In 1831, expert advice was sought on the integrity of the building. Rain had already penetrated the covering of the south-west tower.

As the Telegraph notes, the roofers of the time used an asphalt precursor, known as Stanhope’s Composition, made of tar, dry powdered chalk and sifted sand. As the Telegraph article states:

But now, conservationists are set to strip and replace the original roof and replace “structurally defective chimney stacks”. However, still no copper or lead.

Those of us waiting on hold for bathroom or kitchen renovations can take some solace from this fact: At least you don’t have to wait as long as royalty.

And here’s a picture I took of Buckingham Palace on a trip to London in February of 2012: