Buckingham Palace renovation uncovers 140 years of surprises

You never quite know what a renovation is going to uncover. At Buckingham Palace, however, the builders have found rather more than the usual forgotten wiring and dodgy plumbing.

Workers involved in the huge refurbishment of the Palace have been discovering everyday objects hidden beneath floorboards and elsewhere within the building, some dating back almost 140 years.

Among the finds are an 1889 newspaper fragment, old football pools betting slips, cigarette packaging, bottles, battered boots and paperwork connected to royal events.

It has effectively turned one of Britain's biggest renovation projects into an unexpected archaeological exercise, offering a glimpse not just into royal history, but into the lives of the people who have worked behind the scenes at the Palace.

Perhaps the oldest and most striking discovery is a fragment of The Standard newspaper dating from 27 November 1889.

Rather than containing some grand royal announcement, it features West End theatre listings from the Victorian era.

That's part of the charm of these discoveries. They're not priceless jewels or forgotten royal treasures. They're ordinary things that somebody once used, read, wore or simply left behind.

Other finds include blank Littlewoods Football Pool betting slips from 1957, a battered pair of black hobnail boots and an empty Silk Cut cigarette packet.

Workers also uncovered a ticket for a Royal Household Social Club whist drive. Dated 14 April 1949 and originally costing sixpence, the ticket had become embedded in a piece of building rock.

Together, the objects provide an unusually everyday view of Palace life. Forget state banquets, crowns and carriages for a moment. Apparently, there were also card games, football pools and somebody wondering where they'd left their boots.

Some of the discoveries provide a rather more official glimpse behind Palace doors.

One is a detailed schedule for a diplomatic reception hosted by Queen Elizabeth II during her Silver Jubilee year in 1977.

The paperwork contained timings and instructions for the occasion, including the detail that the Queen would move through the ballroom in a clockwise direction.

It's a wonderfully specific piece of information to have survived for decades and shows how even the administrative paperwork of an ordinary working day can eventually become part of history.

Of course, finding historic odds and ends isn't the main reason workers are pulling the Palace apart.

The discoveries have emerged during a major £370 million reservicing programme involving the building's electrical systems, plumbing, heating and wider infrastructure.

The work began in 2017, with ageing systems needing replacement to protect the building and its contents from long-term damage.

And some of what has been uncovered is considerably more important from a construction and risk point of view.

Old electrical wiring covered with Vulcanised Indian Rubber, or VIR, was also found. The material becomes brittle as it ages and represented a fire risk, which meant removing it was treated as a priority. Around 2km of the old rubber cabling has been replaced.

That rather neatly illustrates one of the challenges involved in refurbishing historic buildings. You may have detailed plans for what you expect to encounter, but until floors come up and walls are opened, there's always a chance the building has a few surprises waiting.

At Buckingham Palace, some of those surprises happen to have been waiting since the Victorian era.

Buckingham Palace is usually seen through the lens of major ceremonies and historic events. Peel back the floorboards, though, and you find traces of ordinary working life.