Queen arrives on Prince Andrew’s arm to Philip’s memorial service

The Queen and Prince Andrew travelled by car from Windsor together

(Reuters)

The Queen has arrived at Prince Philip’s memorial service accompanied by Prince Andrew, just hours after Buckingham Palace confirmed Her Majesty would be in attendance.

The service is taking place today, 29 March, nearly a year after the Duke of Edinburgh died on 9 April last year, aged 99.

The Queen and Prince Philip were married for 73 years before his death.

Philip’s memorial will be held Westminster Abbey in London where 1,800 people have gathered to celebrate the Duke’s life.

Guests include senior members of the royal family Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall, the Princess Royal, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Andrew.

While most of Philip’s grandchildren are in attendance, California-based Prince Harry previously revealed he would not be able to attend due to ongoing security concerns.

Buckingham Palace confirmed this morning that the Queen would be in attendance at the service after recovering from a bout of Covid and struggling with mobility issues.

The Queen arrives at Prince Philip’s memorial with Prince Andrew (BBC)

It marks the first time that Andrew has made a public appearance since settling his sexual assault case in the US.

In February, Andrew reached an out-of-court agreement with Virginia Giuffre, who accused him of sexual abuse, paying more than £10m, including damages to Ms Giuffre and a donation to a charity “in support of victims’ rights”, in the civil case against him.

He previously claimed he had no recollection of ever meeting Giuffre and has vehemently denied the allegations levelled by her.

The settlement followed Prince Andrew’s decision to step down from royal duties in November 2019 in the wake of allegations surrounding his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.

In January, the Queen stripped her son of his honorary military titles and royal patronages, and he stopped using his HRH style.

Andrew will have a front row seat for the service, where he will sit next to his brother, the Earl of Wessex, and his family, including the Countess of Wessex and their children Lady Louise Windsor and James, Viscount Severn.

Across an aisle on his right is where the Princess Royal, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince of Wales and the Queen will sit.

Behind Andrew and Edward’s family will be Peter Phillips, and Zara and Mike Tindall and their daughters.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral in April last year saw just 30 people attend due to Covid restrictions. Social distancing measures also meant the Queen was forced to sit on her own.

In addition to the royal family, some 30 foreign royals are at the service, including Prince Albert of Monaco, Denmark’s Queen Margrethe, King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway, and Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia.

Guests also include 500 representatives from the late Duke of Edinburgh’s various patronages and charities pay their respects at the service.