THE Queen will not attend the annual Commonwealth Day service with senior royals and instead be represented by Prince Charles, Buckingham Palace has announced.
The monarch recently recovered from a bout of Covid, returning to in-person events on Monday.
The service would have been her first major public appearance since reaching her Platinum Jubilee milestone.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “After discussing the arrangements with the Royal Household, the Queen has asked the Prince of Wales to represent Her Majesty at the Commonwealth service at Westminster Abbey on Monday.
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“The Queen will continue with other planned engagements, including in-person audiences, in the week ahead.”
The spokesperson said another member of the royal family had contracted Covid after the Queen, Charles and Camilla all recently tested positive for the virus.
They said: “The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester will no longer attend, following the duke’s positive test for Covid.
“The Queen’s Commonwealth Day message will be distributed in the usual way.”
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During the Commonwealth Day service, the 1500-strong congregation will include Princess Alexandra, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Commonwealth secretary-general Baroness Scotland, high commissioners, ambassadors, senior politicians and dignitaries from across the UK and Commonwealth, faith leaders and more than 600 schoolchildren and young people.
The service will feature the world premiere of the musical piece Beacon Of Brightest Light, inspired by the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, composed by Debbie Wiseman.
The event will begin with a procession of Commonwealth flags and members of the royal family will meet people involved in the service at the end.
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