Queen Elizabeth II, expected to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee, is not expected to attend Thanksgiving Mass this Friday (3), in celebration of her 70-year reign in the United Kingdom, because of “discomforts of mobility”.
Earlier, in London, thousands of people started the celebrations occupying the main roads leading to Buckingham Palace. In the morning, the queen appeared on the balcony of the palace and waved to the audience that was in the place. This Friday, the second day of festivities, the monarch was expected to attend mass at St. Paul.
“Given the journey and activity required to attend Friday’s Thanksgiving Mass, Her Majesty has concluded, with great reluctance, that she will not attend the event,” Buckingham Palace said. According to the statement, the 96-year-old monarch felt discomfort this Thursday (2), while accompanying a military parade.
It is not yet known whether the queen’s discomfort will have an impact on other Jubilee events, which will be celebrated until Sunday (5). This year, due to advanced age and recent mobility problems reported by the Palace, it was already expected that the monarch’s direct participation in the celebrations in her honor would be limited compared to previous celebrations.
This Thursday marked the beginning of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, the 70th anniversary of the coronation of Elizabeth, who became Queen after the death of her father, King George VI, in February 1952.
The first royals who arrived at the Palace were greeted with loud applause from the crowd present. Kate Middleton, wife of Prince William – second in line to the throne – arrived in a carriage accompanied by her three children, George, Charlotte and Louis, and Camilla Parker Bowles, wife of Prince Charles, direct heir to the British Crown.​
The monarchy’s weight in UK politics has shifted, and support has fallen among younger people, but the bulk of the British population is in favor of the Queen. A poll by The Sun newspaper released this week shows that she has 91.7% favorable opinions, while Prince Charles has 67.5%.
The party, however, is not unanimous among the British. Groups of anti-monarchy activists put up posters with slogans such as “make Elizabeth the last”. London police also said they had arrested several people for public order offenses.
