LONDON: According to “Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait,” a new book, Queen Elizabeth II would go “weeks” without seeing Prince Philip.
Page Six has quoted a leading UK-based publication that has published an excerpt of the upcoming book, according to which, the sparse meetings started after the Duke of Edinburgh retired in 2017.
Gyles Brandreth, the author, apparently also mentions that the married couple spoke “frequently” over the phone to stay in touch during that time.
As per Page Six, the biography suggests that the Queen apparently knew that Philip did not want “to be fussed over” and that he preferred to “saw out his days in his own manner,” despite the fact that she and her husband’s arrangement may have seemed strange to some.
The Duke of Edinburgh passed away in April 2021, five years after his retirement.
According to Brandreth’s book, Queen Elizabeth II had been determined to be by Philip’s side when he passed away because they had grown closer during the pandemic lockdown in 2020.
The couple, who had been married for 73 years, reportedly spent more time together in Scotland and at Windsor Castle during the coronavirus pandemic, according to Page Six.
Despite her own deteriorating health, the Queen felt it was her “Christian duty” to continue as best she could after Philip’s death despite experiencing “intense personal grief,” according to the excerpt.
According to Brandreth, viewing television, especially dramas like the British police thriller “Line of Duty,” boosted the royal’s spirits.
The broadcaster adds that the Queen allegedly refused to slow down until last fall when she suddenly lost her vitality and was advised to do so by doctors, as per Page Six.
“My husband would certainly not have approved,” the Queen would say, according to Brandreth.
The Queen’s last public appearance was at the finale of her Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June. (ANI)