QUEEN HAILS SPIRIT OF UNITY BEFORE MEG INTERVIEW
THE Queen has stressed the importance of staying in touch with family and friends during “testing times” in a message broadcast on television just hours ahead of the screening of Oprah Winfrey’s interview with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Focusing on the global impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the monarch spoke of using technology that “transcends boundaries or division” and how there has been a “deeper appreciation” of the need to connect to others during the Covid-19 crisis.
She also praised the “selfless dedication to duty” seen across the Commonwealth, particularly on the front line. Senior royals including the Prince of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge joined forces to appear in yesterday’s special BBC One programme to mark Commonwealth Day.
The Queen’s audio message celebrated collaboration, but stood in contrast to the troubles facing the royal family. As Harry and Meghan were due to be seen focusing on their own experiences of life inside the monarchy, the Queen, who is head of the Commonwealth, used her Commonwealth Day message to highlight the “friendship, spirit of unity and achievements” around the world, and the benefits of working together in the fight against the virus.
“The testing times experienced by so many have led to a deeper appreciation of the mutual support and spiritual sustenance we enjoy by being connected to others,” she said.
Buckingham Palace is bracing itself for what Harry and Meghan will say in their controversial two-hour conversation with Oprah Winfrey – which was being shown last night in the United States – while the Duke of Edinburgh remains unwell in hospital.
In extracts, Meghan has already accused The Firm – as the royal family is sometimes known – of “perpetuating falsehoods” and told how she now felt liberated to make her own choices.
As footage was played of the Queen’s numerous official video calls, the 94-year-old acknowledged that the innovative technology “has been new to some of us, with conversations and communal gatherings, including Commonwealth meetings, conducted online, enabling people to stay in touch with friends, family, colleagues, and counterparts who they have not been able to meet in person.
She added: “Increasingly, we have found ourselves able to enjoy such communication as it offers an immediacy that transcends boundaries or division, helping any sense of distance to disappear. We have all continued to appreciate the support, breadth of experiences and knowledge that working together brings.”
The Queen praised the “selfless dedication to duty” of medical staff and other key workers.
“Whilst experiences of the last year have been different across the Commonwealth, stirring examples of courage, commitment, and selfless dedication to duty have been demonstrated in every Commonwealth nation and territory, notably by those working on the front line, who have been delivering health care and other public services in their communities,” she said.
Harry, the Queen’s grandson, and Meghan were accused of being disrespectful to the monarch’s own life of duty when their permanent departure from the royal family was finalised two weeks ago, with their camp, in what was seen as a parting shot, saying: “We can all live a life of service. Service is universal.”
The monarch’s message, pre-recorded at Windsor, was accompanied by new footage of the Queen filmed last week at the castle, where she has been staying in lockdown. She was seen walking through the grand St George’s Hall, which was lined with Commonwealth flags.