What Are The Queen's Plans For The Rest Of 2021?

Queen Elizabeth was supposed to make her grand return to the public for Remembrance Day on November 14, but a newly-sprained back has put her out of commission once again. According to CNN, however, royal sources have confirmed that her back injury has nothing to do with her previous ailments over the past month.

The news of the queen missing Remembrance Sunday comes just weeks after being hospitalized for reasons unknown and undisclosed by sources within the royal camp. It was chalked up to "preliminary investigations," per the Daily Mail, and the hospital visit came right after she was seen using a walking cane — a first since her knee surgery in 2003. Following her health flare-ups, she was advised to remain at Windsor estate to rest up for two weeks.

Her medically-advised rest was supposed to conclude with November 14th's Remembrance Day, but her latest back injury has prevented her return to active duty. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, however, did note that the queen is doing "very well," per CNN. But now, with the year quickly coming to a close, what else does Queen Elizabeth have scheduled? Will she make any further public appearances?

With Queen Elizabeth approaching her 70th year on the throne, she has long become the longest-reigning monarch (surpassing Queen Victoria in 2015) and will become the first monarch ever to reach the impressive milestone. Her 70th anniversary is set to be celebrated in 2022 with the Platinum Jubilee — a first in royal history given the queen's lengthy (to say the least) reign. But with that arriving next year, this begs the question — what's on Elizabeth's schedule for the rest of this year?

According to the Independent, it's "unlikely" that Her Majesty will appear in public soon, as she is set to partake in virtual appearances until the end of the year — a move that'll most likely be commonplace moving forward. She most recently missed her return to the public on November 14th with Remembrance Day due to a back injury, and she has further canceled her November 16th appearance at the General Synod — a first-time miss for the queen.

Joe Little of Majesty magazine notes, "In terms of official engagements before the end of the year, I don't think we will see her out and about doing anything officially, even if she recovers from the sprained back." With Zoom meetings and virtual conferences becoming more accepted during the pandemic, it makes sense for Queen Elizabeth to finally ease back and not worry so much about public appearances.