I’m Jewish, so obviously I don’t celebrate Easter (it’s actually Passover now), but even so, I think the Queen’s beautiful message of hope resonates ...
I love listening to HM - she has such a lovely, reassuring voice
Chag Sameach! ?
Trooping the Colour's off as well, but they could technically have done the gun salute because it wouldn't have involved crowds ... but it's the right decision to cancel it. It's not the time for making any sort of big show.
Bottom line from Buckingham Palace: "We will not be marking Her Majesty’s birthday in any special way" this year due to the #coronavirus crisis. Any video calls between family members will be private ones.
The Duke of Edinburgh has sent a message "to everyone who is helping to tackle the pandemic and keep essential services running":
** royal.uk: The Duke of Edinburgh's message to everyone who is helping to tackle the pandemic **
Let's be real - he hasn't 'come out of retirement'. He asked his staff to issue a statement (or someone asked his staff on his behalf to issue a statement).
We're getting hours of royal documentaries at the moment! Some are repeats, but there was one about Prince Philip, last night, which must have been made after lockdown started, because the "experts" were speaking via video links from their homes. There's one on Wednesday night about the Queen's role during the war, and one next week about Princess Anne. Most of it just involves showing old video clips, but at least it's something to watch, with no live sport and reduced numbers of episodes of soap operas. We've also had one about Charles and Camilla, although I think that was probably planned in advance, for their 15th anniversary, and one about the Queen Mother's wartime role.
The Queen is set to deliver a nationwide address on May 8 at 9pm to mark this year's VE Day. The time chosen for her speech to be broadcasted on BBC One is particularly poignant as it coincides with the exact hour her father, late King George VI, gave a radio address in 1945 to formally announce the Allies' victory.