Queen Elizabeth Experiencing 'Episodic Mobility Problems,' Palace Says

Buckingham Palace gave an update on Queen Elizabeth’s continued health problems in a statement revealing that the 96-year-old monarch will not be attending the state opening of Parliament on Tuesday. 

“The Queen continues to experience episodic mobility problems, and in consultation with her doctors has reluctantly decided that she will not attend the State Opening of Parliament tomorrow,” the palace said in a release on Monday. 

“At Her Majesty’s request, and with the agreement of the relevant authorities, The Prince of Wales will read The Queen’s speech on Her Majesty’s behalf, with The Duke of Cambridge also in attendance.” 

In her astounding 70 years of reign, this will be only the third time that the queen has missed the ceremony.

The queen’s decision to bow out of the state opening follows a string of cancellations   including the royals’ Easter traditions, Remembrance Day and the upcoming Buckingham Palace garden parties due to her continued health and mobility problems over the last few months. 

She was hospitalized in October and was forced to take two weeks of rest, which the palace only revealed after the fact.

Just a few months after that, she tested positive for COVID-19 , shortly after Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, also tested positive. The palace said at the time that the queen was only “experiencing mild cold like symptoms” and was expected to “continue light duties.” 

Her mobility and health were also called into question during Prince Philip’s Service of Thanksgiving  in March when she attended on the arm of her disgraced son Prince Andrew, aided by a cane .

The queen revealed a bit more about her coronavirus symptoms while virtually attending the opening of Royal London Hospital’s Queen Elizabeth Unit.

“It does leave one very tired and exhausted, doesn’t it?” she said in April. “This horrible pandemic. It’s not a nice result.”

Queen Elizabeth has a packed schedule coming up next month, as the royal family and well-wishers prepare for her Platinum Jubilee celebrations. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle confirmed last week that they will be in attendance, alongside their two children Archie and Lili. 

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