U.K.'s Queen Elizabeth II cancels traditional Christmas plans amid Covid-19 omicron surge
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II has canceled her traditional Christmas plans amid a surge of the Covid-19 omicron variant in the U.K.
LONDON — Many in the United Kingdom are hoping to have a relatively normal Christmas this year despite the raging Covid-19 pandemic, but its most famous resident has already changed her traditional plans.
Queen Elizabeth II will not spend the festive period at the Sandringham estate in eastern England, a senior Buckingham Palace source said Monday, as cases of the highly contagious omicron variant continue to spread.
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Instead, the monarch, 95, will remain at Windsor Castle, about 25 miles west of London, where she has spent most of the pandemic. It is the second consecutive year she has canceled her usual trip to the Sandringham estate, as well as a traditional family lunch.
The royal family has for years spent the holidays at Sandringham, in Norfolk in eastern England, where crowds gather to watch them attend the local church on Christmas Day.
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