Rugby: Royalty ready for opening ceremony

Prince Harry and Prince William have regularly been guests of England Rugby over the years. Photo / Getty

No Queen - and no word on whether New Zealand rugby royalty will play a part in the opening ceremony of the Rugby World Cup at Twickenham tomorrow morning.

Queen Elizabeth, a guest of honour at the opening ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics and the 2014 Commonwealth Games, has decided to stay on holiday in Balmoral despite being the patron of the Rugby Football Union.

Instead Prince Harry, as the vice-patron, will represent his grandmother instead, along with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, ahead of England's opening match against Fiji.

The brothers are regular VIPs at the home of English rugby and have previously enjoyed rubbing shoulders with the All Blacks, with Ali Williams once teasing the heir to the throne about his thinning crown. But there's been no hint about whether All Blacks who starred in the previously tournament will make an appearance.

Previous World Cup winning captains, such as David Kirk of the champion 1987 side, are in London for speaking engagements, as is Jonah Lomu who set the 1995 and 1999 competitions alight.

Lomu was a special guest at the opening ceremony at Eden Park four years ago and would be a logical choice for an encore appearance, as the only true global rugby superstar and someone very familiar to English audiences. Tournament organisers have also revealed the opening ceremony could be cut short to avoid the curtain-raiser between England and Fiji being delayed.

Performers will tell the story of the sport's birth - expected to include William Webb Ellis picking up a football and running with it at Rugby School in 1823 - in a 20-minute show that will finish just 40 minutes before kick-off in the first Pool of Death match.

Groundsmen will have an extremely tight window to clear the pitch, with organisers arranging the pre-match show so acts can be instantly cut if there is any danger of the 8pm kick-off time being compromised.

"The ceremony is broken down into segments and if something were to go wrong, they can drop a segment without the audience noticing to keep kick-off exactly on time,' World Cup managing director Stephen Brown told the Daily Mail.

"The teams are aware of the arrangements and it won't have any fundamental impact," said Brown. 'They will be out just before the ceremony, then return to the changing rooms. The most important thing is that it doesn't get in the way of the rugby."