Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip receive COVID vaccine
Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, received the first dose of their COVID-19 vaccines on Saturday, Buckingham Palace has confirmed.
The Queen, 94 and the Duke of Edinburgh, 99, were vaccinated at Windsor Castle by a household doctor, a royal source told the BBC.
The royal couple are now among around 1.5 million people in the United Kingdom who’ve had at least one dose of the vaccine against the deadly coronavirus.
According to Sky News, the rare announcement on the family’s private health matters came as the queen wanted to make the information public to avoid any speculations and inaccuracies.
She “decided that she would let it be known she has had the vaccination,” the palace said in a statement, according to The Associated Press.
The Queen and Philip have been spending most of the COVID-19 lockdown in England, at their Windsor Castle home.
This year they skipped the traditional Christmas family gathering at the family’s Sandringham House in Norfolk, in lieu of a quiet holiday celebration at the royal residence.