A frank and personal message from Queen

The nation has gone quiet. Normal life has paused. We look on from lockdown as health staff and vital workers strive to save lives, keep the lights on and our cupboards stocked.

We now count the daily fatalities in hundreds but every single death is personal; loaded with grief and hurt.

In normal times the loss of young nurses, children, transport workers and prison staff would be unthinkable. This, however, is the new reality.

Those of us with elderly loved ones readily accept their time will come but the crisis is robbing families of the chance to pay final respects.

Last night was a poignant moment for our country. Sunday nights are traditionally quiet. Last night the stillness was amplified by the lockdown.

It was during this reflective pause the Queen addressed the nation. We are accustomed to Christmas broadcasts but this was only the fourth time in her long reign the Queen has spoken directly to the British people.

This was the woman who watched her father deliver a solemn message to the nation and Commonwealth at the outbreak of war in 1939.

The Queen was positive but did not offer false hope. She acknowledged the grief, disruption and personal and financial hardship people are facing. But then she offered reassurance that families “will meet again”.

She thanked NHS staff and care workers who are the frontline of the crisis and others carrying out essential roles to keep the country functioning.

It was a personal message. After all, she has lived through troubled times before. She spoke of her faith that the nation will prevail and her belief that “the attributes of selfdiscipline, of quiet, good-humoured resolve and of fellowfeeling still characterise this country”.

The Queen said: “I hope in the years to come everyone will be able to take pride in how they responded to this challenge.

“And those who come after us will say that the Britons of this generation were as strong as any.”

We can only hope so. We are living through an emergency and how we cope, act and share now will be remembered for decades to come.