GET BETTER SOON, MA’AM
As Queen misses church again with nasty cough...
ILLNESS forced the Queen to miss church for the second week running yesterday. Her decision not to attend divine service at St Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham estate means she has now not been seen in public for 24 days.
But aides insist her absence is strictly precautionary. ‘She has a nasty cough and it was thought that standing in a draughty church for an hour or so would be unwise,’ said a source.
Royal physicians, who have been monitoring the Queen’s health since she and Prince Philip contracted heavy colds before Christmas, advised her to remain indoors and not put herself through the strain of a public appearance.
Sources have told the Mail that the 90-year old monarch is on the mend but has developed a hacking cough. Behind the scenes there is every sign the Queen is determined to get over her illness as soon as possible.
She has insisted that the Royal Family’s traditions should carry on as normal over new year and she has kept her regular appointments – including one with her hairdresser.
Her illness had forced her to miss the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene for the first time since the tradition started in 1998.
A source said: ‘Her Majesty doesn’t like going to church with a cough because she thinks it is off-putting for other celebrants.’
CONCERNS over the Queen’s health grew yesterday after she missed church for an unprecedented second week running due to a heavy cold.
The 90-year-old monarch is battling a bug she contracted in midDecember which led her to miss the Christmas Day service with the rest of the Royal Family for the first time in several decades.
Sources said she was struggling with a hacking cough. Doctors advised her to stay indoors with her dogs at her private home in Norfolk and not put herself through the strain of a public appearance on a morning of heavy rain.
‘It’s a nasty, persistent cough and it was thought that standing in a draughty church for an hour would be unwise,’ one source said. ‘Plus she just doesn’t like to be seen to seen in public when she is ill, and her cough is nasty enough that it would be difficult to hide.’
Another source said: ‘Her Majesty doesn’t like going to church with a cough because she thinks it is off-putting for other celebrants.’
The Queen’s absence from St Mary Magdalene Church on the Sandringham estate yesterday means she has not been seen in public for 24 days, since December 9, when she attended an official engagement at Buckingham Palace.
It is unlikely she will make any appearance until she attends church this coming weekend, assuming she is well enough.
Buckingham Palace was last week forced to confirm the Queen was alive after hoaxers announced her ‘death’ on a fake Twitter account.
A royal spokesman said yesterday: ‘The Queen does not yet feel ready to attend church as she is still recuperating from a heavy cold.’
Despite the concern, royal aides insisted that the monarch was on the mend. They said she was ‘up and about’ and going through the red boxes of official papers she is required to attend to almost every day of the year with the help of her deputy private secretary.
‘She is very much up and about and working on her red boxes but just didn’t feel quite well enough to go to church,’ said one. The Queen had a hairdressers’ appointment as usual and the traditional New Year’s Eve first footing ceremony – where a footman crosses the threshold of Sandringham at midnight to welcome in the new year – went ahead.
Other members of the Royal Family did attend the Sunday morning church service, including Prince Philip, 95, who appears to have recovered from the same illness.
Although the Duke of Edinburgh was driven the half mile to St Mary Magdalene instead of walking – his usual preference – he appeared upbeat and was even heard joking to members of the public about the heavy rain as he left the 16th century church. Princess Anne also moved to allay public fears, insisting her mother was on the mend.
She replied ‘better’ when asked how the Queen was.
Her husband, Sir Tim Lawrence, who was walking with her, was also asked how the Queen was feeling and replied: ‘Not too bad.’ Also present were Prince Edward and his wife Sophie, the Countess of Wessex – who accompanied Philip in the car – with their daughter, Lady Louise, 13.
As he walked back to Sandringham House, Edward wished a happy new year to onlookers, saying: ‘Let’s hope it gets better. It can’t get much worse.’
A crowd of around 250 people had braved the cold and lashing rain to stand outside the Norfolk church.
Lynn Willert, 68, a hypnotherapist from Lowestoft, Suffolk, said: ‘I was very disappointed not to see the Queen, but it is very sensible of her to put herself first and stay indoors.
‘Anybody would be worried about illness at her age, but she certainly has this tremendous fortitude.’
Prince Charles is here in Scotland marking the new year with his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.