Queen Elizabeth appears in public
She meets scientists working to fight virus
LONDON — Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday carried out her first public engagement outside of a royal residence since early March, when the coronavirus pandemic started to affect all aspects of day-to-day life in the U.K.
The 94-year-old monarch was joined by her grandson Prince William at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down near Salisbury, in southern England, and met with scientists battling the virus.
The queen unveiled a plaque to officially open the new 30 million-pound ($39 million) Energetics Analysis Centre, used by scientists for counter-terrorist work. The royal pair were also introduced to staff involved in the rapid response to the Novichok poisoning attack on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury in 2018.
Though the U.K. is in the midst of a resurgence of the virus, neither the queen nor William was seen donning a face covering; both observed social distancing rules of staying 6.5 feet apart from each other and anyone else. The queen had arrived by helicopter separately from the Duke of Cambridge, who had traveled by car.
All 48 people who were due to
come into close contact with the royal pair had been tested for the coronavirus. All the tests came back negative.
Kensington Palace, the London residence of William, declined to comment as to whether the prince had also been required to have a test in order to be able to accompany his grandmother at Thursday’s event.
They spent a large chunk of the past few months at the royal residence of Balmoral in Scotland, before they moved to Sandringham in eastern England. The queen re
turned last week to Windsor Castle to resume audiences and small engagements, while Philip, 99, has stayed at Sandringham.
The queen has been a visible presence, most notably in her two televised addresses to the nation from Windsor Castle in April and May, which were partly intended to bolster people’s resolve in the face of the lockdown.
She also knighted in July at Windsor Castle the 100-year-old Captain Sir Tom Moore for his fundraising efforts in the early days of the pandemic.