Ashes 2013: The Queen makes an appearance at Lord's - but can only stay for an hour

Her Majesty saw England lose three early wickets to Australia

Charles Reynolds
Thursday 18 July 2013 16:57 BST
Comments
The Queen is introduced to the players before the start of play
The Queen is introduced to the players before the start of play

She may be more famous for her love of horse racing, but the Queen was at Lord’s this morning for the first day of the Test.

Coming through the famous members Pavilion she walked down onto the pitch and was introduced to the players on both sides by captains Alastair Cook and Michael Clarke.

While the Royal visit meant the start of play was pushed back by 15 minutes, there was no repeat of Denis Lillee’s infamous hijinks from any of the players.

Clutching a pen and a photo, the Aussie fast bowler asked the Queen for her autograph when she was presented to the players before the centenary Test in 1977.

The Queen, who is a patron of the MCC, was at the ground for the first time since the 2009 Ashes series when she saw England enjoy an excellent day on their way to a famous 115-run victory.

However this time as she watched on from a Pavilion balcony, England endured a terrible start, losing three early wickets.

Whether Her Majesty couldn’t bear the prospect of seeing England skittled out by Australia at Lord’s, a recurring feature of her reign, she left after just over an hour with some speculating that this was because the Duchess of Cambridge had gone into labour.    

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in