One’s had a power cut!

Gales blackout hits Queen

IT is not the sort of apology the Queen – or her staff – is likely to have made before.

But yesterday, after the gales tore down electricity lines at Sandringham, Her Majesty found herself with a house full of guests who had to be told that breakfast was going to be late.

The Queen discovered her private home was without power after trying to turn on her bedside lamp and finding it wasn’t working.

She and her guests had to wrap up and await help after the power cut struck at 6.30am – despite Prince Philip having put in solar panels for emergencies at the 20,000-acre estate 25 years ago.

Eventually an on-site generator kicked in, providing the 270-room Jacobean house with ‘essential services’ such as overhead lights and gas for cooking and heating. But it was not until late last night that electricity was restored.

A royal insider said: ‘Several trees have been uprooted. At some point the power went down and they couldn’t get it back up so the Queen had to be informed.

‘In fact the Queen woke up to find she could not turn on her light and was soon told by a maid what had happened. Obviously breakfast was delayed.’ The source added: ‘The house is absolutely full and so it was very embarrassing but everyone took it in good spirits and coped as best as they could. Prince Philip was cracking a few jokes about it but he and the Queen were obviously concerned about their guests and were not happy that the power was out for so long.’

It is understood the Crown Prince of Bahrain, a close friend of the monarch, is staying at the Norfolk house until Sunday, although there was some suggestion he was not present when the power went off.

The Queen’s weather issues continued on her annual visit to the Sandringham branch of the Women’s Institute – which was also left without electricity.

She was still ‘smiling and laughing’, however, as she had a cup of tea in the dark. The Queen joked that she was struggling to see the WI ladies, while some used iPhone torches to light the room.

All those present enjoyed cake and tea – despite the chilly temperatures in the hall – while they listened to a guest speaker, BBC reporter Susie Fowler-Watt.