A parade through Hamilton to celebrate King Charles III’s 74th birthday was cancelled because of inclement weather.

A government spokeswoman said that the Royal Bermuda Regiment’s decision was taken out of “an abundance of caution for the safety of our participants”.

An RBR spokesman said later that “a parade in the rain is no fun”.

He added: “We cannot afford to get the colours wet, as they are silk and very expensive.”

The parade was called off at about 9am, 90 minutes before the scheduled start. Rain and thunder started at about 11am and continued until about 2pm.

The parade was planned to move down Front Street and would have been the first to celebrate Charles III’s birthday as King.

The occasion is being celebrated in Britain and most of its territories around the world.