THE Queen is in a “reflective” mood as she prepares to face a tough Jubilee without her beloved Prince Philip, her former press secretary has revealed.
Dickie Arbiter said this year’s anniversary of the 95-year-old Monarch’s accession is the first celebration of it’s kind that Philip hasn’t been around for.
He stressed that while the Duke of Edinburgh may not have been present at previous Jubilees, “his presence was felt”.
Instead, the Queen will get through it in a “reflective mood”, remembering the “only two men she adored and loved” – Philip and her father King George VI.
Sunday’s Accession Day marked 70 years since the king died and his daughter – aged just 25 – became Queen of a nation still recovering from the upheavals of the Second World War.
Dickie told the Sun: “You don’t celebrate the death of your father.
“But at the same time, you recognise that people do want to celebrate the achievement – and they will be celebrating that achievement in June.”
He said the loss of Prince Philip in April 2021 makes the celebration more sombre than it has been in years gone by.
Dickie added: “This is the first Accession Day that Philip hasn’t been around. In the past, he may not have been with her but his presence was felt. This year, no.”
“This year [will be] more poignant because she was remembering her father and her strength and stay Prince Philip.
“She’s remembering the two men in her life that she adored and loved. They’re both gone.
“She had her first Christmas on her own without Prince Philip, she will have her first Birthday, she’ll remember Prince Philip on what would have been his 101st birthday.
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“There’s a lot of firsts that the Queen has to confront.
“They probably mean a lot more to someone in their 90s than someone very much younger.
“Widowhood is lonely, but when you’re 95, I imagine it’s even lonelier.”
He said the Queen just has to “get through the year”.
“She’s very stoic. She’s very pragmatic in the way that she went through the Golden Jubilee in 2002 with first her sister dying and then her mother dying,” he added.
“It’s very tough when you’re very much in the public eye and these anniversaries are coming up.”
DAY OF REFLECTION
In a message released to mark her Platinum Jubilee this weekend, Her Majesty said she remembers as much for her father’s death as her accession to the throne.
“It is a day that, even after 70 years, I still remember as much for the death of my father, King George VI, as for the start of my reign,” she said.
“As we mark this anniversary, it gives me pleasure to renew to you the pledge I gave in 1947 that my life will always be devoted to your service.”
In a video clip released by Buckingham Palace on Sunday, Her Majesty flicked through messages sent to her commemorate her accession with her Private Secretary Sir Edward Young.
He points out one from President Joe Biden to which she replies “that’s very kind, isn’t it?”.
It comes as it emerged Camilla will be handed the title Queen when Prince Charles takes the throne – in a stunning royal reversal.
In an address marking her Accession Day the Queen, said it was her “sincere wish” that the Duchess of Cornwall will be known as Queen Consort.
