BROKEN HEARTS
Anne’s painful goodbye as royals moved by Balmoral tributes
HER face etched in sadness, the Queen’s only daughter Princess Anne said a painful goodbye at a Balmoral church service yesterday.
She was supported by Prince Andrew and his daughters as well as Prince Edward and his wife Sophie as she cast her eyes over the sea of flowers left at the castle gates in Aberdeenshire.
And it was this, with public mourners looking on, that seemed to push royal brave faces to the verge of tears.
Anne, 72, had the support of husband Tim Laurence, 67, after the service at the nearby Crathie Kirk where Her Majesty was a regular worshipper.
A sombre Andrew, 62, seemed to clasp his hands in prayer and put his arm around his girls Eugenie, 32, and Beatrice, 34, as they read tributes to the Queen.
He thanked mourners for their support, before telling them: “We’ve been allowed one day as a family. Tomorrow we start the process of handing her on.”
It was the first time he has been seen meeting the public since settling his court battle with Virginia Giuffre in March.
And it was his first appearance at a public event since Prince Philip’s Westminster Abbey memorial service that month.
EMOTIONAL
Also with the family group were Anne’s children Zara, 41, and Peter, 44. Edward and Sophie’s daughter Lady Louise Windsor, 18, was there too.
Mourner Tom Harrison spoke to both Andrew and Anne. He said: “They were understandably emotional. We’ve all shed a tear.”
Donna Crompton, 58, from Liverpool, held Eugenie’s hand after spotting her tearing up. She said: “Sophie told me, ‘Thank you for coming, it means a lot’.”
Sisters Emily, six, and Holly, four, had travelled from Fife with parents Nicola and Jeff Williams.
NHS worker Nicola, 41, said: “The Queen was an inspiration for women and children so I wanted to bring the girls to see a moment of history.
Emily said: “I sent the Queen a card for the Jubilee and she sent a card back.”
The Queen’s body remains in the Balmoral ballroom where staff have been allowed to say their own farewells to her.