Last month, Queen Elizabeth II postponed her annual holiday train voyage to Sandringham Hall due to illness.
The Queen and Prince Philip made the trip by helicopter 24 hours later, and the delay was downplayed by royal sources who claimed that the monarch was simply waylaid by a bad cold.
But now it seems the Queen’s illness may be more serious than we’ve been led to believe.
The 90-year-old was scheduled to participate in her final royal engagement of the holiday season on Sunday – a church service at Sandringham – but she wasn’t feeling well enough to attend.
“Her Majesty The Queen will not attend Sunday worship at Sandringham today,” a statement from Buckingham Palace released yesterday read.
“The Queen does not yet feel ready to attend church as she is still recuperating from a heavy cold.”
A Palace spokesperson later went into slightly greater detail in response to a query from People magazine:
“Her Majesty The Queen will not attend Church at Sandringham this morning,” the statement read.
“The Queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery. Her Majesty will participate in the Royal Family Christmas celebrations during the day.”
The Queen has not made an official public appearance since December 9, when she hosted the ambassador of Liberia.
While Palace officials continue to insist there’s no cause for concern, at 90 there’s no such thing as a minor health problem.
Anyone who’s looked at last year’s list of royal engagements knows that the Queen keeps an incredibly busy schedule and very rarely cancels appearances.
Perhaps that hectic lifestyle has simply caught up to her.
Or perhaps there’s reason to be worried about the world’s longest-reigning autocrat.
Just last week, the Queen was the subject of a viral death hoax on Twitter, which prompted thousands of re-tweets and one harried denial from the Palace.
Sources close to the royal family say 95-year-old Prince Philip has also taken ill.
We will have further updates on this developing story as more information becomes available.