The Queen will ‘with much reluctance’ skip the National Thanksgiving Service at St Paul’s Cathedral in London on Friday, according to Buckingham Palace.
The 96-year-old monarch, who has had mobility problems, is believed to have felt ‘discomfort’ throughout today’s activities, which kicked off the four-day Platinum Jubilee celebration to mark her 70-year reign.
The president, on the other hand, will attend tonight’s lighting of the beacons.
The Palace said: ‘The Queen greatly enjoyed today’s Birthday Parade and Flypast but did experience some discomfort.’
In a full statement the palace added: ‘Taking into account the journey and activity required participate in tomorrow’s National Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral, Her Majesty with great reluctance has concluded that she will not attend.
‘The Queen is looking forward to participating in tonight’s Beacon lighting event at Windsor Castle and would like to thank all those who made today such a memorable occasion.’
It follows a jam-packed first day of the Platinum Jubilee weekend, which will end on Sunday with a special Pageant celebrating the life of the nation’s longest-reigning monarch.
The Queen was joined by other royals on the Buckingham Palace balcony today in front of tens of thousands of cheering Britons amid joyous scenes at Trooping the Colour as her historic Platinum Jubilee celebrations began.
The 96-year-old monarch, who wore her Guards brooch and the blue Angela Kelly outfit used in her official Platinum Jubilee portrait, exclaimed ‘incredible!’ when she took the salute after arriving from Windsor Castle.
The royal has been using a stag horn mobility aid in recent weeks and is often spotted with her late husband Prince Philip’s walking stick – which is dark wood with a marble handle.
But today, she instead picked a brand new cane, which appeared to have a marble handle and wooden body and which was made by Cumbria-based traditional stick maker Dennis Wall.
General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, chief of the general staff, had presented her with the gift as a symbol of the British Army’s support.
On October 12th last year, Her Majesty was seen using a stick for support in public for the first time in nearly 20 years as she marked the Royal British Legion centenary at Westminster Abbey.
Two days later, she carried a stick as she as she attended the sixth ceremonial opening of the Senedd at the Welsh Parliament building in Cardiff.
The monarch had stayed in Philips’s beloved Wood Farm cottage for the 70th anniversary of her father’s death, which also marked her Accession Day, on February 6.
The Queen has been forced to cancel a string of engagements in recent months and last week missed the State Opening of Parliament, symbolically asking her son, Prince Charles, and grandson, Prince William, to stand in.
But royal aides insisted that despite what they describe as ‘episodic’ mobility issues, the monarch is in good spirits and very much in charge behind the scenes.
Following today’s Trooping the Colour, the Queen then returned to the balcony at Buckingham Palace around half an hour later to watch the RAF flypast featuring the Red Arrows along with senior royals including Prince Charles, Camilla, Prince William and Kate and their children.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle did not make an appearance on the Palace balcony but were reunited with some of their relatives as they kept a low profile inside a room of the Major General’s Office at the other end of The Mall on Horse Guards Parade, where they watched Charles inspect guardsmen and officers and take their salute.
It comes after months of speculation over where the Sussexes would stand and whether they would even attend the Jubilee amid an ongoing security row. In the end, they were only allowed to watch from the room overlooking the Whitehall parade ground after the Queen declared that only senior working royals could join her at the Palace.
Wearing sunglasses, the Queen looked joyful as she surveyed the patriotic scenes, giving broad smiles while enjoying the six-minute flypast which involved 70 aircraft, including Apache helicopters, Typhoons and the Red Arrows. Fifteen RAF Typhoons paid a special tribute to the Queen’s reign, flying in the formation of the number 70.
While Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis all appeared, there was no place on the Palace balcony today for Prince Harry, Meghan Markle or Prince Andrew given that none of them are no longer working royals.
From their Horse Guards Parade balcony, Meghan and Harry were seen putting their finger to their lips next to Savannah Philips, Mia and Lena Tindall in an apparent attempt to quieten the children. The Sussexes also spoke with the Duke of Kent, who joined his cousin the Queen for both of her trips onto the Palace balcony.
On the second trip, Charles stood on the Queen’s right-hand side and the pair could be seen chatting and smiling. Huge cheers of ‘hooray’ erupted outside and as the aircraft approached, the Queen could be seen looking ahead and smiling. Meanwhile, Louis waved towards the sky and rested his chin in his hands.
The Queen could also be seen interacting with Louis, who was standing next to her on the balcony. And the young prince was photographed holding his hands over his ears as the aircraft soared overhead. The monarch smiled throughout the flypast and waved at the crowds before going back into the palace.
When the Queen made her appearance on the balcony there was a delayed reaction from the crowds in The Mall and spectators sat in the stands built for tomorrow’s Party at the Palace. A cheer went up when they spotted her on screens and she smiled as the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment passed the gates of Buckingham Palace. The troopers took around five minutes to ride past as the Queen chatted to the Duke of Kent.
Other Royal Family members had started off the Trooping the Colour festivities earlier today – with the Duchess of Cambridge and her three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis waving for excited crowds.
This morning, three carriages carrying Royal Family members left the forecourt of Buckingam Palace and travelled down the Mall. The Duchess of Cornwall rode alongside Kate Middleton and her children in the first carriage.
George, eight, Charlotte, seven, and three-year-old Louis smiled and waved enthusiastically as they sat in a row, known as a barouche, with Louis in the middle of his older siblings.
They were followed by the Earl and Countess of Wessex with children Lady Louise Windsor and James, Viscount Severn; then the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence in the third carriage.
The nation is embracing the special extended four-day bank holiday weekend of pomp, pageantry and star-studded festivities, which will see celebrities and the public gather in their millions in tribute to the monarch.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: ‘Congratulations to Her Majesty The Queen on your remarkable Platinum Jubilee. The whole country, Commonwealth and world thank you for your unwavering duty and service. Vivat Regina Elizabetha! God Save The Queen!’
Meanwhile the Duke of York will now miss tomorrow’s Service of Thanksgiving for the Queen after testing positive for coronavirus.
The Duke of York is understood to have seen his mother the Queen in the last few days but she has tested negative – and he has not seen her since testing positive.
Andrew, 62, was expected to join his royal relatives at the Service of Thanksgiving in London tomorrow despite him no longer being a working member of the family.
But, in a dramatic development just hours before the service, a Buckingham Palace spokesman said this afternoon: ‘After undertaking a routine test The Duke has tested positive for Covid and with regret will no longer be attending tomorrow’s service.’
Andrew was not on the Buckingham Palace balcony today for the flypast after the Queen limited those appearing alongside her to working members of her family.