LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s Queen Elizabeth will celebrate Christmas at Windsor instead of her usual choice of Sandringham, a palace source said on Monday, as the Omicron coronavirus variant continues to spread rapidly.
“The decision was a personal one after careful consideration and reflects a precautionary approach,” the source said. “There will be family visiting Windsor over the Christmas period and all appropriate guidelines will be followed.”
Last week, the queen cancelled a pre-Christmas lunch with her family as a precaution.
Britain’s royal family normally mark Christmas Day by walking from the queen’s Sandringham estate in eastern England to a nearby church to attend the morning service.
The 95-year-old monarch spent most of the pandemic at Windsor Castle to the west of London. Her husband Prince Philip died in April this year after more than seven decades of marriage.
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Chris Reese and Andrew Heavens)
