The Queen cancels two virtual engagements as she recovers from Covid
The Queen cancelled two virtual engagements scheduled for Thursday as she continued to recover from Covid.
The 95-year-old monarch tested positive for the virus on Sunday and has been suffering "mild, cold-like" symptoms throughout the week.
She cancelled two virtual engagements on Tuesday and an in-person engagement on Wednesday, which would have been in breach of isolation guidelines.
Fears for the Queen's health were alleviated on Wednesday evening, however, when Buckingham Palace confirmed that she had held her usual weekly audience with Boris Johnson by telephone. The two audiences cancelled on Thursday were the only remaining entries in her diary for this week.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said she was sufficiently well to continue with "light duties" as she rests at Windsor Castle. The duties include receiving her daily red box of government papers, signing off statements and dealing with other correspondence.
Hours after Buckingham Palace announced last weekend that the Queen had Covid, she sent her "warmest congratulations" to Great Britain's women's curling team for their performances at the Beijing Winter Games.
She also issued a personal message of condolence to the president of Brazil on Monday following the floods in Petropolis. The messages served to illustrate her determination to continue with official duties and avoid causing undue concern.
The monarch is being closely monitored by a team of palace doctors, and it is not known whether she continues to test positive for the virus.
She is believed to have been triple vaccinated and recently spent more than three months resting on doctors' orders.
In the autumn, she pulled out of attending the Cop26 climate change summit and the Festival of Remembrance. She then missed the Remembrance Sunday Cenotaph service because of a sprained back.
The Queen now regularly uses a walking stick and has recently appeared frail. She remarked during a Windsor Castle audience last week: "Well, as you can see, I can't move."
Next Wednesday she is due to host a diplomatic reception at Windsor Castle, where she will meet hundreds of members of the Diplomatic Corps.
The event, usually held at Buckingham Palace, has been scaled back from white tie to cocktail dresses and lounge suits.
Senior members of the Royal family usually turn out in force for it, with duchesses in tiaras, but it will be a lower-key affair this year. The event will go ahead on March 2, and invitations have been issued.
The Queen is also due to attend the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey on March 14 and a service of thanksgiving for the life of the Duke of Edinburgh on March 29.
Meanwhile, it emerged that the Duke of Cambridge made a private visit to the London headquarters of MI6 on Wednesday morning. The visit came as Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. Kensington Palace aides said it had been in the diary for a number of weeks.
In 2019, the Duke spent three weeks working with MI5, MI6 and GCHQ to learn how the UK's security and intelligence agencies operate.
