Royal sources claim Queen Elizabeth II is ‘largely confined to wheelchair’

Royal sources have opened up about the Queen’s health, revealing the real reason the “proud” monarch is pulling back.

Royal sources have opened up about the Queen’s health, revealing she is “pacing her diary” amid concern that “she can’t stand for long” periods of time.

According to The Sun, sources said senior royal aides at Buckingham Palace have accepted the “frailties that come with living a long life” are finally catching up with her.

“It’s about pacing her diary now,” one source told The Telegraph UK.

“She has said herself that she is as committed to service as ever, but that will have to take a slightly different form.”

According to British actor Christopher Biggins, he claims the Queen is “largely confined to a wheelchair” ahead of her Platinum Jubilee and is cancelling engagements because she “doesn’t want to be seen” struggling.

Christopher Biggins arrives at Westminster Abbey. Picture: Getty Images

However, the 95-year-old monarch is said to be determined to attend the thanksgiving service next week for the Duke of Edinburgh, who died last April at the age of 99, despite having been forced to pull out of several engagements.

The Queen wants to walk for as long as possible and has so far ruled out using a wheelchair in public.

But according to The Sun, the option of assistance has been explored so she can get around faster and in comfort.

Speaking on GB News, Mr Biggins, 73, said the Queen’s confinement to a wheelchair was the catalyst for her duties being cancelled.

He also praised her as “our greatest ever monarch”.

“I have heard that the reason she’s not doing a lot of the events that she should be doing and cancelling them is because she is in a wheelchair,” he said.

Queen Elizabeth II welcomes the new Governor General of Canada, Mary Simon and her husband at Windsor Castle on March 15. Picture: Getty Images

“She doesn’t want to be seen, she’s very proud.

“It’s so very sad and I hope she is able to make her anniversary celebrations.”

Comparing the Queen to her late sister Margaret, whose appearance in a wheelchair was largely discussed months before her death, Mr Biggins said it was “embarrassing” for the monarch.

He went on to address claims the Queen has had a lift installed at her Balmoral residence.

“Everyone I know is putting in lifts,” he said.

“You can fit a lift very, very cheaply if you have the space. Two flights of stairs for me now is quite something.”

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II presents the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry during a private audience at Windsor Castle, on March 16. Picture: AFP

A royal expert has also claimed that the Queen is finding it “extremely difficult to walk or stand for long periods”.

Speaking to The Telegraph UK, royal expert Phil Dampier said: “She will make a huge effort to attend the Prince Philip memorial, but they will have to make allowances for her – and no one will begrudge it.

It comes after reports Buckingham Palace has a meticulously orchestrated “military-style” plan to take the Queen to Prince Philip’s memorial.

The operation is said to include six-foot privacy screens, a helicopter and a football tunnel to get Her Majesty to the service while protecting her privacy.

Originally published as Royal sources claim Queen Elizabeth II is ‘largely confined to wheelchair’