News / Politics

Queen to address the nation amid coronavirus crisis

Sunday, 05 April 2020 5:50 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 05 April 2020 5:50 PM ]

The coronavirus pandemic presents the Queen with the biggest crisis of her 68-year reign

Queen Elizabeth II is to address the nation later tonight as the country prepares to enter the most acute phase of the coronavirus crisis.

The pre-recorded message is set to be aired tonight at 20:00 BST.

According to multiple media reports the monarch will stress the values of “self-discipline” and “resolve” during the current unprecedented crisis.

Apart from her annual Christmas message, the Queen has only made a special televised address on four other occasions during her 68-year reign – notably during the Persian Gulf War of 1991, after the deaths of Princess Diana and of the Queen Mother, and to mark her Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

According to multiple media reports, the Queen is expected to say the following in her speech: "I am speaking to you at what I know is an increasingly challenging time … A time of disruption in the life of our country: a disruption that has brought grief to some, financial difficulties to many, and enormous changes to the daily lives of us all".

According to the BBC’s royal correspondent, Nicholas Witchell, the speech is intended to “reassure and rally people” at a time of heightened anxiety and uncertainty.

According to multiple media reports, the Queen’s message was recorded at Windsor Castle, where the head of state is staying as an intensifying crisis grips her country.

In keeping with government health guidelines designed to contain the pandemic, the message was filmed by a single cameraman wearing protective equipment, with all the other technical staff in another room.

The Queen’s special address comes in the wake of the infection with the coronavirus of high-ranking members of the establishment, including Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and her own son and heir to the throne, Prince Charles.

Despite persistent rumors that the Queen herself may have been infected, Buckingham Palace still hasn’t confirmed if the monarch has been tested for the coronavirus.

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www.presstv.co.uk