Queen Elizabeth absent from Christmas Day service because of illness
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| Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip are seen on a carriage to Buckingham Palace during the Queen's 90th birthday celebrations in London, Britain on June 11, 2016. (Xinhua/Han Yan) |
Queen Elizabeth absent from Christmas Day service because of illness
LONDON,
Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Britain's longest serving monarch, Queen Elizabeth,
missed her Christmas Day visit to church for the first time in decades
because of illness.
The church visit on the day is also a traditional family event.
The tradition started when the royal household started to spend Christmas at the Queen's private estate at Sandringham.
Concerns about the Queen's health were raised earlier this week when
she had to delay making the train journey from her home in London to her
private estate at Sandringham in Norfolk. Palace officials said both
the Queen, 90, and her 95-year-old husband, Prince Philip, were
suffering from "heavy colds."
But the Royal couple made the 161-km journey to Sandringham by helicopter a day late.
In a brief statement, an official palace spokesman at Kensington
Palace said: "Her Majesty the Queen will not attend church at
Sandringham this morning. The Queen continues to recover from a heavy
cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery. Her Majesty will
participate in the Royal Family Christmas celebrations during the day."
The Daily Express national newspaper in London said it appeared it
was the first time in Queen Elizabeth's reign of 64 years that she has
missed the traditional Christmas Day service.
Millions of people turned in to watch the Queen's traditional message
on national television. The speech had been pre-recorded a few days
before she became ill.
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