Queen's frail health makes upcoming Jubilee celebrations 'very difficult'

Birthday celebrations are approaching after a difficult year for the Queen. It’s been barely a year since Prince Philip, her “strength and stay”, died last April and since then she’s lived alone with her staff and beloved dogs at Windsor Castle. She fought off Covid and attended her late husband’s memorial service at Westminster Abbey on March 29.

Everyone knows the Queen loves chocolate cake on her birthday - but what about presents? Records released by Buckingham Palace showed our monarch received 72 official presents in 2019, including a pop-up book from Chinese President Xi Jinping, and a 24-carat gold-plated horse comb. So, as Her Majesty turns 96, what do you get a woman who has it all? Biographer Ian Lloyd, author of The Queen: 70 Chapters in the Life of Elizabeth II says what the Queen wants most is practical items.

During lockdown the Queen stayed at home like the rest of us, but she had a little help with her hair. While we struggled with our unruly un-cut locks, Her Majesty was treated to a snip and style at ‘Kelly’s Salon’. In her newly updated memoir, royal dressmaker Angela Kelly described being among the core staff - aka ‘HMS Bubble’ - living at Windsor Castle in the height of the pandemic.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be a "distraction" at the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II, a royal expert has claimed.The Duke and Duchess of Sussex recently visited the Queen in a surprise return to the UK, Meghan Markle's first since leaving The Firm in 2020, and prompted suggestions that the pair could attend the celebration.The 70-year reign of Queen Elizabeth is set to be celebrated, but critics have said the attendance of Harry and Meghan would cause a "media frenzy" and distract from celebrations.One royal expert has claimed the couple would be a distracting addition with their corporate, tell-all deals with Netflix and Penguin Random House.One expert, Camilla Tominey, said: "A celebration of the Queen's 70 years on the throne should not be the Harry and Meghan show."Another expert, military historian Christopher Joll, agreed with Tominey, saying: "It should not be the Sussex show. They will inevitably be a distraction if they turn up."But that doesn't mean to say they shouldn't turn up.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have reportedly been invited to appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace for the the Queen's Jubilee Celebrations.The Duke and Duchess of Sussex went to visit the 95 year old head of state last week, before jetting to the Netherlands for the Invictus Games. Following on from their secret visit, which Harry opened up on, the latest reports show more progress towards the family healing their rift with Harry, 37, and 40 year old Meghan. It's been claimed the couple will appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during the Jubilee celebrations, but will have no formal role.

Prince Harry has given an insight into his and wife Meghan Markle's visit with the Queen, after jetting to the UK for a secret meeting with the Queen last week.The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were reported to have flown from California to the UK together for the first time since stepping down from their roles as senior royals in 2020. Harry, 37, and wife Meghan, 40, were said to have left onlookers stunned as they stopped by Windsor Castle on Thursday 14 April. A spokesperson for the couple confirmed to OK! the couple visited the Queen before flying to the Netherlands for their appearance at the Invictus Games over the weekend.

Prince Harry has commented for the first time on his visit to the Queen before his Invictus Games. The Duke of Sussex, who was joined by wife Meghan Markle when he met his grandmother last week said it was "great to see her".During their catch up, the monarch shared her backing for British veterans competing in the Netherlands over the weekend, Harry revealed.He said: "She had plenty of messages for Team UK which I've already passed on..."So, it was great to see her and I'm sure she would love to be here if she could."Harry and Meghan were last with the Queen in person during the Commonwealth Day service on March 8, 2020, before their recent meeting at Windsor.Before their appearance at Windsor on Thursday, April 14, Harry is thought to have not been in the UK since July 2021, while Meghan hasn't been in the country since 2020.Harry was present at the funeral of Prince Philip on April 17 and also unveiled a statue of his mother Princess Diana alongside his brother Prince William in July last year.Senior royal sources have described the meetings as “incredibly warm and good natured” and “very cordial”.The Duke and Duchess told Her Majesty their plan to return so the Queen can spend time with 11-month-old Lilibet and Archie.Royal Family expert Angela Levin told Good Morning Britain viewers on Friday she believed the Sussexes will hope the visit improves their position ahead of the Invictus Games and their Netflix series.Presenter Adil Ray was hosting the instalment with Kate Garraway and asked Angela if it was a "good thing" that the Sussexes had visited the Queen.Angela said: "I'm not sure that it is, I think you have to be very careful not to jump to conclusions.

Queen Elizabeth took a private moment to grieve after Prince Philip‘s funeral.

Plans for a festival celebrating Dumbarton have been postponed by a further year – with organisers calling for the River Leven to be cleared up before any showcase takes place.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s decision to leave their children in LA during their brief visit to the Queen was “an insult” to the monarch, Thomas Markle has claimed.Having not returned to the UK together since their acrimonious royal exit in early 2020, Harry and Meghan made a surprise visit to meet Charles and the Queen on the way to the Invictus Games in The Hague.Their children Lilibet and Archie did not appear to be present, and Meghan’s estranged father Thomas has suggested that this would likely have upset the Queen on the latest episode of his Remarkable Friendship podcast.Reflecting on Harry and Meghan’s decision to leave their children in California, Thomas suggested: “That’s another slap in the face to the Queen.“They shouldn’t have bothered stopping if they didn’t bring the kids… I think that she would look around and wonder where the great-grandchildren are and be disappointed that they weren’t there.“She’s always said that she wanted to see the children; she wanted to see Archie and she wanted to see Lili.”Thomas went on to suggest that Meghan leaving her 10-month old daughter behind to embark on a European trip was “very odd”, but accepted that Doria may have offered to hep out with childcare while the Sussexes are away.He continued: “Everything they do brings on more trouble. Like I said, leaving the kids behind and showing up with the Queen is an insult to the Queen.

MailOnline reports that the couple's brief meetings at Windsor Castle with the Queen and Prince Charles were to discuss attending the celebrations with their children, Archie, who is three next month, and Lilibet, who will turn one during Jubilee festivities and whom the Queen is still yet to meet. And the Duke of Wales has reportedly expressed concerns to his inner circle that his son and daughter-in-law could dominate the Jubilee if they do and detract from commemorating the Queen's 70 years of service with their "circus", reports The Sun.A royal source told The Sun said: “Charles wants the Platinum Jubilee to focus only on the Queen.“Many are disappointed that Andrew overshadowed Prince Philip's thanksgiving service and don't want the Meghan and Harry circus to hijack the Jubilee.“This is the Queen’s show and should be about her and her 70 years of service rather than Meghan’s fashion, the kids and Harry.“They don’t want it to become the Harry and Meghan show.

Meghan Markle, 40, was spotted comforting her husband Prince Harry as they tenderly held hands during the beginning of the Invictus Games, which followed a secret visit to see the Queen at Windsor Castle. The couple made a brief stopover in the UK on their way to the Netherlands for the international sporting event, which supports military personnel and servicemen and women who have fought.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s choice to not bring their children with them on their trip to the UK would have been a source of “great heartache” for the Queen, an expert has claimed. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex briefly visited Windsor on Thursday 14 April to catch-up with Her Majesty and Prince Charles before heading to the Invictus Games in the Netherlands.

Prince Harry and Meghan 's long-awaited reunion with the Queen and Prince Charles at Windsor Castle this week ended with the couple promising Her Majesty would see her new great-grandchildren soon, a source has claimed. The Mirror reports that following the visit, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex opened up the possibility that they will return from the US for the Platinum Jubilee.The couple's secret Thursday face-to-face meeting with the 95-year-old monarch who has yet to meet her great-granddaughter Lilibet, was the first such meeting since they quit Royal life in 2020.

Back on royal soil! Harry and Meghan visited the Queen during a pitstop in London on their way to the Invictus Games in the Netherlands, marking the first time the couple has reunited with the monarch since their royal exit two years ago.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stopped in briefly to see the Queen before making their way to the Netherlands.The two have not seen Her Majesty in person for some time due in part to Harry's decision to take him and his family away from royal life by stepping back from his duties in early 2020.Harry is said to have been concerned about his family's security when returning to the UK and recently caused controversy by not returning to the country for grandfather Prince Philip's memorial service at Westminster Abbey.The event was overshadowed by Harry's absence, in which the senior members of the royals took part, and when the disgraced Prince Andrew led the Queen to her seat.The secret Windsor meeting came as something of a surprise due to Harry's concerns about visiting the UKHarry and Meghan were last with the Queen in person during awkward the Commonwealth Day service on March 8, 2020, before their recent meeting at Windsor.According to a royal expert, the two likely showed the Queen "iPhone videos of grandbabies" and probably did not discuss any topic too serious like 'negotiations or debate', as part of a healing process.Expert, author and host of To Di for Daily podcast Kinsey Schofield said: "It probably involved a lot of iPhone videos of grandbabies and stories of silly sentences and baby interests.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s flying visit, a royal expert has claimed.Royal fans were surprised by news that Harry and Meghan had stopped over at Windsor Castle to meet the Queen – their first trip to the UK together since their acrimonious departure from royal life in early 2020.The pair had been on their way to The Hague for the Invictus Games, where they are expected to be accompanied by a camera crew to film for Harry’s Netflix documentary project on the sporting contest.And, despite the monarch reportedly welcoming the pair, royal expert Jennie Bond told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that Queen Elizabeth would have been disappointed not to meet her namesake Lilibet, who is nearly a year old.“She must be so, so upset not to have met her [great]-granddaughter who has her name,” she said.“But there we are, they have their Netflix camera crew following them around and it would have been very nice wouldn’t it, if the crew had been allowed to see that meeting between the three or four of them.“But I don’t imagine the crew were allowed into Windsor castle.”Also commenting, ITV royal editor Chris Ship suggested that the couple never intended for the children to travel to the Invictus Games with them, and claimed that Meghan would only stay in The Hague with Harry for the first couple of days anyway before heading back to California.But, despite the brevity of their encounter, Jennie added that the in-person meeting between the ex-royals and their family members must have been “enormously emotional”.“I’ve been watching Harry grow up and been reporting on him since he was a little boy and he’s certainly not without feelings and he’s not without love and sentiment, perhaps he’s got a bit too much of those things in fact.To

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have surprised much of the UK with their secret trip to their former homeland.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a secret visit to see the Queen as they head to the Netherlands for the Invictus Games. The couple, who have been living in California since stepping back from their duties as senior royals in March 2020, made the visit on Thursday while en route to Holland. And according to reports, it’s not just the Queen who the couple saw on their whistle stop trip.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a pit stop in the U.K. to visit Queen Elizabeth II, ET has confirmed.A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex tells ET the couple visited Her Majesty on Thursday at Windsor Castle «as we previously said he hoped to do.» The spokesperson added Harry and Meghan stopped by on their way to the Netherlands to attend the 2022 Invictus Games. It's unclear if their children -- Archie, 2, and 10-month-old Lilibet — were in tow.Nevertheless, that Harry and Meghan touched down in London to visit the queen is significant news considering it marked their first visit to the U.K. since the couple stepped down from their roles as senior members of the royal family in 2020.The visit comes on the heels of Harry not attending the service of thanksgiving honoring his late grandfather, Prince Philip, at Westminster Abbey on March 29. Philip died in April 2021 at age 99.A spokesperson for Harry said at the time that, while the duke would not be returning to the U.K.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a pit stop in the U.K. to visit Queen Elizabeth II, ET has confirmed.A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex tells ET the couple visited Her Majesty on Thursday at Windsor Castle «as we previously said he hoped to do.» The spokesperson added Harry and Meghan stopped by on their way to the Netherlands to attend the 2022 Invictus Games. It's unclear if their children -- Archie, 2, and 10-month-old Lilibet — were in tow.Nevertheless, that Harry and Meghan touched down in London to visit the queen is significant news considering it marked their first visit to the U.K. since the couple stepped down from their roles as senior members of the royal family in 2020.The visit comes on the heels of Harry not attending the service of thanksgiving honoring his late grandfather, Prince Philip, at Westminster Abbey on March 29. Philip died in April 2021 at age 99.A spokesperson for Harry said at the time that, while the duke would not be returning to the U.K.