Stairs flap keeps Queen from N.S. tattoo

Organizers of the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo are hoping to resolve a dispute over a set of stairs that is keeping the Queen from attending the event.

Organizers have been told that Queen Elizabeth, 83, won't speak at the musical event during her summer visit to Halifax.

The Queen's staff in Canada wants her to access the stage by climbing 17 steps. But tattoo organizers argue that the steep, angled risers are too dangerous because there are no railings and the lighting is dim.

'It's not an age issue.' Ian Fraser,Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo

Ian Fraser, artistic director of the tattoo, said the performers are disappointed they won't see the Queen.

"Our cast ranges in age from eight to 80. And many of those are members of the Canadian Forces and a lot of them are youngsters who have been really looking forward to this," he said.

The tattoo is billed as the world's largest annual indoor show, with more than 2,000 military and civilian performers. The Queen Mother opened the first show in 1979, andthe event gained its royal status in 2006 onElizabeth's 80th birthday.

Fraser said organizers have suggested other ways for the Queen to address the crowd, including the construction of a specialstage, but those ideas were turned down.

The flap over the stairs has created a furor in the British press. The Daily Mail, for instance, called it an insult to the Queen, and "one of the most remarkable examples of health and safety paranoia ever."

Fraser dismisses any suggestion that the Queen is too old to handle the stairs. He said it's simply a matter ofsafety and dignity, and that no one uses the risers without extensive dress rehearsals.

"This has nothing to do with Her Majesty's age. People have said, 'This is an age issue.' It's not an age issue," he said Monday.

Fraser said he doesn't know who made the decision to keep the Queen away, but he hopes it will be reversed.

The office of the Queen's Canadian secretary declined an interview with CBC News on Monday.

The tattoo will take place at the Halifax Metro Centre from July 1-8.