… and welcomes Prime Minister BORIS JOHNSON while Jubilee plans continue
AN EXCITING PLATINUM JUBILEE COMPETITION LAUNCHES
In another sign that it is business as usual after lockdown, the Queen held an audience with Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week – their first in-person weekly meet in 15 months.
After decamping to Windsor Castle during the pandemic, the monarch greeted the Tory leader in the Audience Room at Buckingham Palace, telling him: “How nice to see you again.”
The Queen, 95, last met the PM for their faceto- face weekly audience on 11 March 2020, although they were together at the G7 summit in Cornwall in early June.
When the Prime Minister told her it had been 15 months since their previous audience, she said: “Good heavens. It’s most extraordinary.”
Her Majesty also showed she has lost none of the political savvy she is known for and that she has been keeping a close eye on events at Westminster, despite the death of her beloved husband the Duke of Edinburgh in April.
A short video of the meeting, which is normally private, showed her referring to a difficult month for Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who has come under criticism for his handling of the Covid-19 crisis.
“I’ve just been talking to your Secretary of State for Health, poor man. He came for Privy Council,” she said. “He’s full of…” to which the premier suggested: “Full of beans?”
The Queen added that the Health Secretary “thinks that things are getting better”, leading the Prime Minister to say: “Well, er, they are, in the sense that we’re…” before the video cut off.
HISTORIC DESIGNS
Her Majesty’s meeting with the Prime Minister was one of several newsworthy events for the monarchy last week, including Buckingham Palace and the V&A Museum announcing a new competition to find the official emblem for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee next year, which will commemorate her record-breaking 70 years on the throne.
Searching for a fitting symbol to capture the spirit of the monarch’s historic reign, they’ve asked aspiring creatives aged 13-25 to submit an original design that sums up the momentous occasion, with judges including Margaret Calvert, who designed many of the UK’s road signs, and Yinka Ilori, who is known for his bold, colourful style.
The emblem will feature prominently throughout next summer’s celebrations, which include a four-day bank holiday in June, televised national events, street parties and community gatherings. It will also be used for all official merchandise and across digital and social media.
The winner and nine runners-up will have their work displayed at the V&A and be guests at the Platinum Party at the Palace, a concert bringing together some of the world’s biggest entertainers, to be televised by the BBC.
Other highlights of the weekend include the first full- scale Trooping the Colour since the pandemic and a service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral, while the race-loving Queen will also enjoy a day at the Epsom Derby.
For more information and to enter, visit platinumjubilee.vam. ac.uk. Closing date is 16 July at 6pm.