Britain's Queen Elizabeth II returned to royal duties on Tuesday, just four days after the death of her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.
The 94-year-old monarch marked the retirement of her household's most senior official, the former Lord Chamberlain Earl Peel.
Her return to duties comes as preparations are under way for Philip's funeral at Windsor Castle, in south-east England, on Saturday.
The royal family and their households are observing two weeks of mourning, with members of the family "continuing to undertake engagements appropriate to the circumstances", an official said.
Mr Peel had overseen arrangements for the duke's funeral before handing responsibility to his successor.
In overall charge is former MI5 spy chief Baron Parker, who took up his new role on April 1, following Mr Peel's retirement after more than 14 years in the post.
He had initially intended to step down last year, but stayed on to guide the monarchy through the coronavirus pandemic.
The Lord Chamberlain oversees all senior appointments in the household and is the channel of communication between the monarch and the House of Lords, the upper house of the UK's legislature.
During a ceremony at Windsor Castle, the queen accepted her former royal aide's wand and insignia of office.
The official engagement was recorded in the Court Circular – a daily list of the events attended by the queen and her family.
“The Earl Peel had an audience of The Queen today, delivered up his Wand and Insignia of Office as Lord Chamberlain and the Badge of Chancellor of the Royal Victorian Order and took leave upon relinquishing his appointment as Lord Chamberlain, when Her Majesty invested him with the Royal Victorian Chain,” it said.
The queen recently conferred a prestigious honour on Earl Peel, making him a Permanent Lord in Waiting.
Meanwhile, as part of security preparations, Thames Valley Police are carrying out searches around the town of Windsor, with officers examining phone boxes, post boxes, drains and bins as part of the operation.
A police official said they have put a range of visible and covert security measures in place for Saturday, when the duke is to be honoured with a ceremonial royal funeral in St George's Chapel.
The queen might have to sit alone during the service due to social distancing rules, The Telegraph reported.
She is staying at Windsor with a reduced number of about 22 staff.
The duke's long-standing close aide, his private secretary Brigadier Archie Miller Bakewell, will be one of the few, and possibly only, non-royals invited.
It is thought Philip’s funeral could attract one of the largest television audiences of the year.
The biggest TV audience so far in 2021 was the 25.1 million people who watched UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announcing a new lockdown for England on January 4, while 13.9 million tuned in for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's interview with US broadcaster Oprah Winfrey last month.
Broadcasters have yet to confirm their plans for Philip’s funeral, but the BBC and ITV are likely to devote several hours to the event, including the ceremony at 3pm.
The queen and Philip’s daughter, Princess Anne, made a public appearance on Wednesday, visiting young sailors at the Royal Yacht Squadron sailing club on the Isle of Wight off England’s south coast.
Since Philip’s death his four children have all paid him tribute, as have grandsons Prince William and Prince Harry.
Another grandchild, Princess Eugenie, paid tribute to her “dearest Grandpa” in an Instagram post on Wednesday. The younger daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York, shared memories of “learning how to cook, how to paint, what to read” with her grandfather.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
India squads
T20: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur
Test: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant
MADAME%20WEB
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20S.J.%20Clarkson%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Dakota%20Johnson%2C%20Tahar%20Rahim%2C%20Sydney%20Sweeney%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
