William and Kate bring their children George and Charlotte to Wales

Prince William and Kate were joined by Prince George and Princess Charlotte as they brought the Platinum Jubilee celebrations to Wales today while visiting concert rehearsals at Cardiff Castle. 

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, along with George, eight, and Charlotte, seven, met performers and crew involved in a special Platinum Jubilee Celebration Concert taking place within the grounds of the castle.

William and Kate seemed to encourage their shy-looking children to shake hands and introduce themselves to dignitaries as they arrived in the Welsh capital. It is believed to be George and Charlotte’s first official royal visit. 

Missing was Prince Louis who stole the show when he appeared on Buckingham Palace’s balcony with his family and the Queen after the Trooping the Colour ceremony on Thursday.

The couple and their children are due to watch rehearsals and meet some of the acts taking part in the celebrations including Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler. Bonnie was last week made an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her services to music.

The royals will also meet weatherman Owain Wyn Evans who is known for his role on the nightly news programme North West Tonight and The One Show. The Cambridges and their children will then be introduced to a number of West End performers, Rubicon Dance Company and the Wales Youth Choir for Good.

The visit is one of a number members of the royal household are carrying out across the UK to mark the Jubilee. While the Cambridges visited Cardiff, Prince Edward and Sophie Wessex arrived in Northern Ireland. 

Harry and Meghan, on the other hand, are expected to be absent from Jubilee celebrations today, as they celebrate daughter Lilibet’s first birthday at Windsor and continue to keep a low-profile. 

According to Omid Scobie, they will mark the birthday ‘together privately as a family’. The Queen, Prince Charles and Camilla and the Cambridges all wished Lilibet a happy birthday through their social media accounts.

Later, William and his father Prince Charles will take centre stage in front of a crowd of 22,000 to pay tribute to the Queen during a star-studded Jubilee concert outside Buckingham Palace. 

The father and son – both future kings – will speak separately in honour of the monarch towards the end of the BBC‘s open-air Party at the Palace show, on the third evening of the four-day Jubilee festivities.

Despite the event not starting until 8pm, royal fans began arriving at The Mall from 8am to get the best spot. 

It is thought unlikely the Queen will attend the concert but confirmation of any movements will be released later today. She will also not attend today’s Epsom Derby Day, but is expected to be glued to the TV, watching the developments from Windsor. Princess Anne will appear in her place. 

Meanwhile, Princess Beatrice and her husband Edoardo were pictured leaving the Maison Estelle private member’s club at 1am last night. 

The Met Office has warned of thunder and downpours this morning – but a second round of storms is set to miss concert-goers at the Party at the Palace. 

The Queen delighted crowds on Thursday with an appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony, where she is expected to appear again after the Pageant parade finale on Sunday.

However she was unable to attend the service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday, after experiencing some ‘discomfort’ during the first day of celebrations. 

She has also spent some personal time with the Sussexes, who have brought their children Archie and Lilibet over from the US – the latter of whom the monarch has met for the first time this weekend. 

The Derby on Saturday June 4 was to be a personal highlight for the Queen during the four days of Jubilee festivities.

The head of state, a passionate horse owner and breeder, was due to be greeted on the course with a special guard of honour including up to 40 of her past and present jockeys. 

In the evening today, the BBC’s Party at the Palace – set on three stages in front of Buckingham Palace – will entertain a live crowd of 22,000 people and a television audience of millions. 

Diana Ross, Queen + Adam Lambert, Alicia Keys, Hans Zimmer, George Ezra, and Eurovision 2022 runner-up Sam Ryder are among the celebrity acts set to perform.

Three interconnected stages have been erected around the Victoria Memorial at the top of The Mall. The design incorporates 70 illuminated columns, one for each year of the Queen’s reign. 

The Queen, 96, who has been facing ongoing mobility problems, pulled out of attending the service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday after experiencing discomfort following two balcony appearances and a beacon lighting on Thursday.

Nearly 50 members of the royal family including the Duke and Duchess of Sussex joined in honour of the absent head of state for the religious occasion.

The Duchess of Cambridge said later the Queen had enjoyed Thursday’s celebrations but the day had been ‘very tiring’.

Saturday is the first birthday of Harry and Meghan’s daughter Lilibet, who travelled with the Sussexes and older brother Archie for her first visit to the UK.

The Earl and Countess of Wessex are visiting Northern Ireland to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

They will first visit Belfast, where the Royal couple will join members of the public at a 1950s-themed celebration on Royal Avenue in the city.

The earl and countess are meeting groups of performers, including the Belfast Busking Band, and will hear stories of the city’s diverse communities over the last 70 years, which will be explored through fashion, photography, music and dance.

The earl will also meet older members of the local community, brought together by Age Friendly Belfast to share their memories and experiences.

Meanwhile, the countess will join in with special platinum jubilee craft activities, making crowns and corgis with school children, before viewing a showcase of fashion through the ages.

The couple will also try a local delicacy, the Belfast Bap, and will visit stalls at the Retro Jubilee Market.

Before leaving Belfast, the earl and countess will watch a community dance group perform a routine that celebrates the last seven decades.

The royal couple will then travel to their second engagement in the region on Saturday afternoon.

The Party at the Palace will be set on three stages in front of the Queen’s London residence.

Soul legend Ross will close the two-and-a-half hour show with her first UK live performance in 15 years.

Star including Sir David Attenborough, Emma Raducanu, David Beckham and Stephen Fry will also feature, as well as a specially recorded performance from Sir Elton John.

The evening will highlight global themes that have emerged or evolved during the the Queen’s reign including British and Commonwealth contributions in the fields of fashion, sport, the environment and pop music.

The Queen finally got to meet her great-granddaughter Lilibet in a private meeting at Windsor.

It is believed that Harry and Meghan took their children to Windsor Castle to see their great-grandmother soon after they arrived in the UK, given the Queen’s current mobility problems, although this has not yet been officially confirmed.

Lilibet was, somewhat controversially, named in tribute to the Queen, whose childhood nickname was Lilibet. It was coined when the then Princess Elizabeth was a toddler in the 1920s and struggled to pronounce her own name properly.

The Queen’s father George VI was quoted as saying of his daughters: ‘Lilibet is my pride. Margaret is my joy.’

The nickname was also used by the monarch’s late husband, Prince Philip, as well as close family and friends.

At the time, many saw the Sussexes’ decision to name their daughter after the Queen as an attempt to emphasise their links with the Royal Family at a time when they were setting up lucrative commercial deals as part of their new independent lives in the US.

Buckingham Palace also became embroiled in a row over whether the Queen was consulted over the name in advance.

The BBC reported that the Sussexes had not asked permission to use the name and that none had been granted. 

But a spokesman for the couple insisted that Lilibet’s great-grandmother was told in advance and that they would not have used the name had the monarch disapproved of it.

The spokesman said: ‘The duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement – in fact, his grandmother was the first family member he called.

‘During that conversation, he shared their hope of naming their daughter Lilibet in her honour. Had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name.’

Harry also threatened legal action against the broadcaster, asserting that the claims were ‘false and defamatory’.

Some royal sources have waspishly indicated that there was a world of difference between asking permission and presenting it as a fait accompli.

Meanwhile, palace aides were said to have choreographed timings for the Platinum Jubilee service at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday to ensure that Prince William and Kate Middleton didn’t bump into Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

It was Harry and Meghan’s first royal engagement with senior royals since the frosty Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in March 2020, shortly before they officially stepped down as senior royals for a life in the United States.

But in their first public engagement in two years, the couple sat apart from Prince William, Kate, Prince Charles and Camilla in the church after royal aides ensured they sat on separate sides of the aisle in a carefully orchestrated plan.

As well as the seating arrangements in the cathedral, timings were also carefully considered by Palace aides, with the couple arriving and leaving the service at different times to William and Kate to avoid bumping into each other.

Harry and William have had a long-standing feud, while Harry has accused his father Charles of cutting him off financially and Meghan claimed an unnamed royal made a comment about Archie’s skin tone before he was born – with the Sussexes having a war of words with the Palace following last year’s bombshell Oprah Winfrey interview.

Amid the feud, a source said palace aides had been acutely aware of ‘the optics’ – how things would look from the outside – and ensured that the couple were only attending events where there would be minimal interactions with other senior royals in public.

Asked if the Sussexes would appear at any other events over the weekend, particularly with their children, the source said: ‘I really wouldn’t expect them at everything.’

They added: ‘It’s a typically elegant solution as you would expect. The Queen wants her family there and they are still part of it. But in a carefully controlled fashion.’

Elsewhere, Omid Scobie told BBC Breakfast that ‘people close to the couple’ said they ‘wanted to be as low profile as possible during this trip’, while a royal insider said they believed the couple had taken their ‘low-key’ cue from the Queen.

Palace’s plan to get Queen ready for Sunday’s Jubilee finale: Royal aides are taking a ‘bookend’ approach to four-day celebrations in hope of getting monarch back on royal balcony for Sunday’s showstopper pageant – after Epsom Derby disappointment

BY LAURENCE DOLLIMORE FOR MAILONLINE 

Royal aides are said to be taking a ‘bookend’ approach to the Queen‘s Platinum Jubilee celebrations as they prioritise getting the monarch on the Buckingham Palace balcony for Sunday’s show-stopping finale pageant. 

It comes after the 96-year-old head of state was forced to pull out of two key events after suffering ‘discomfort’ related to her mobility issues – Friday’s thanksgiving service at St Paul’s Cathedral and today’s Epsom Derby. 

The Queen has been forced to cancel a string of engagements in recent months and most recently missed the State Opening of Parliament in May. Her son, Prince Charles, and grandson, Prince William, stood in for her. 

A senior royal source told the Daily Mail that while the Queen enjoyed the opening day of festivities ‘immensely’, the ‘episodic mobility issues’ she had suffered since last autumn ‘were experienced during the course of the day’.

Royal aides stressed that it had always been Her Majesty’s ‘hope’ to attend rather than a firm commitment. 

Buckingham Palace said it will confirm whether she will attend other events over the next two days as soon as possible. 

It is thought royal aides may be trying to help her rest to ensure she will be able to make an appearance at Sunday’s closing Platinum Jubilee Pageant. 

‘It seems the palace are taking a ‘book-end’ approach, allowing her to attend at the start and finish without taxing her too much in between,’ a source said.

On Thursday it emerged that the Duke of York, who has had contact with the Queen recently, had Covid, meaning he would be a no-show at any future Jubilee event. 

On Friday, the Duchess of Cambridge revealed that the Queen had a ‘lovely’ time at the opening Platinum Jubilee celebrations, but had found the day ‘very tiring’.

Her Majesty made three memorable public appearances on Thursday, including the lighting of the Principal Platinum Jubilee Beacon ceremony at Windsor Castle, but had experienced ‘some discomfort’.

Her attendance at the Epsom Derby had been considered one of the high spots of the weekend’s events, particularly for royal herself. 

It is the only one of the ‘classics’ she has never won in her long career as a racehorse owner.

The Jockey Club had spent the past few months making extensive plans to facilitate her attendance, including allowing her car to drive right up the course and pull up outside the Queen Elizabeth stand where the Royal Box is located. 

But on Friday afternoon Buckingham Palace announced that she had decided not to attend, and would instead watch the racing on television at Windsor Castle.

Princess Anne is now expected to represent her mother at Epsom and is likely to be accompanied by her family. 

No other senior royals will be there as many have engagements on behalf of the Queen elsewhere or will be preparing for Saturday night’s Party at the Palace concert.

Phil White, London regional director for The Jockey Club, said: ‘It is a rare occasion that the Queen is unable to join us at Epsom, but we are delighted she plans to enjoy Derby Day on television. 

‘We have big plans to celebrate Her Majesty’s contribution to horseracing and the nation, and these will continue in full.’

The plans include many of the Queen’s former jockeys, such as Willie Carson, forming a guard of honour in her distinctive racing silks.

Friday’s service at St Paul’s was attended by more than 2,000 guests, including senior royals and politicians. 

Harry and Meghan Markle were kept apart from Prince William, Kate, Prince Charles and Camilla, with royal aides ensuring they sat on the other side of the aisle – and they later left separately.

Straight afterwards, Charles, Camilla, William and Kate arrived for a reception the nearby Guildhall.

The Duchess of Cambridge is said to have told an attendee the Queen is ‘fine’ but had found the day ‘very tiring’.

Gill Smallwood, from Bolton, spoke with Kate and asked how the Queen was doing.

Ms Smallwood said of the conversation: ‘She [Kate] said ‘yes, she was fine, it was just very tiring yesterday, and she (the Queen) had had a lovely, lovely time’.’

Buckingham Palace officials took great care to try to avoid a repeat of the frosty scenes when the Sussexes and Cambridges sat near each other and left together at their last joint event in March 2020 at Westminster Abbey.

And aides would have been delighted that today’s service passed without any such incident or negative ‘optics’ given the attempts to ensure today was about the Queen and her 70-year reign.

The announcement about Her Majesty missing the Epsom Derby is the latest sign of the problems caused by the monarch’s advancing age.  

In May, she was forced to miss the State Opening of Parliament for the first time in 59 years, due to what her spokesman described as ‘episodic mobility problems’ which they said she was continuing to experience. 

The only other times she had missed the hugely important occasion were in 1959 and 1963, when she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and Prince Edward respectively.  

In her place, Prince Charles, who was accompanied by Prince William, read her speech for the first time as the Queen watched on TV from Windsor Castle, but the Sovereign’s Throne in the House of Lords remained symbolically empty. 

It came after she had to skip the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in mid-March due to her physical struggles and also did not attend the traditional Maundy Thursday service at Windsor Castle. 

The Queen’s health took a turn for the worse after her husband Prince Philip’s death last April. 

In October 2021 – after working ten of the previous 20 days – she spent a rare night in hospital that forced her to miss a visit to Northern Ireland. 

But she was back at her desk within hours of being discharged, despite having to cancel an appearance at the Cop26 summit in Glasgow.

In February, she tested positive for Covid-19 which prompted her to cancel a series of engagements, including virtual audiences. She suffered from what were described as ‘mild, cold-like symptoms’.

The Queen, who in recent weeks has used a walking stick – including at yesterday’s events – was told by doctors to rest for three months.

She gave a hint about her health when she remarked during an audience at Windsor Castle in February: ‘Well, as you can see, I can’t move.’

She later admitted that covid had left her exhausted. 

Her Majesty’s hopes of winning on Epsom Derby day have already come to an end after her only runner was pulled out of a race. 

Just Fine had been entered to feature in the penultimate race, the World Pool Northern Dancer Handicap, staged over the full Derby course and distance of one mile and four furlongs.

However, it was removed at Thursday’s 48-hour declaration stage.

In May, her horse Reach For The Moon, who was among the favourites, and two others were withdrawn.

The Jockey Club announced the three thoroughbreds were among a large number who had been ‘scratched’ from the entry list.

Thoroughbreds owned by the Queen have won four out of the five flat racing classics – the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas, the Oaks and the St Leger – with only the Derby eluding her.

Phil White, London regional director for The Jockey Club, said today: ‘We would like to wish Her Majesty The Queen a wonderful Platinum Jubilee.

‘It is a rare occasion that the Queen is unable to join us at Epsom Downs but we are delighted she plans to enjoy Derby Day on television.

‘We have big plans to celebrate Her Majesty’s contribution to horseracing and the nation, and these will continue in full tomorrow.

‘The Derby is a unique race and we are looking forward to welcoming people in their thousands to help us create a spectacular carnival atmosphere.’