The Queen is set to miss one of her favourite annual events after reports she has pulled out of attending the Highland Games.
The Queen is said to have pulled out of attending the Highland Games tomorrow, with Prince Charles scheduled to attend instead.
Her Majesty, who is still enjoying some time out in Balmoral (opens in new tab) as part of her summer break, is expected to break a huge royal tradition (opens in new tab) when she welcome in England’s new Prime Minister next week from Balmoral and not London.
But ahead of that official engagement, she has pulled out of attending the Scottish Highland Games – a firm favourite in the event calendar which she has only ever missed on a handful of occasions including during the Covid (opens in new tab) pandemic.
The 96-year-old monarch has been suffering from episodic mobility (opens in new tab) issues since the start of the year and has been forced to juggle her calendar to ensure she is not overdoing it.
(Image credit: Getty)
Back in May the Queen was forced to pull out of the State Opening of Parliament (opens in new tab) and only attended part of her celebrations for the 70th Platinum Jubilee.
But by missing out on The Braemar Gathering, held in September, the Queen is missing the biggest and most prestigious Highland Games event and enjoys the annual attendance of the Royal Family. Its origins are Royal too.
The event is considered so important because it offers a glimpse into how medieval clans competed against each other and prepared for battle during the Middle Ages. Today, there are over 100 games that take place every single year.
Visitors enjoy the tremendous atmosphere; take pictures of the colourful tartans and cheer on the participants as they ‘toss the caber’, ‘put the stone’ and ‘throw the hammer’. Other fun events include the children’s sack race and the tug of war competition.
And the Queen, as patron of the event since Queen Victoria’s time, usually presents the cups and shields at the end of the games but this year Prince Charles is expected to stand in for the Queen.
