Buckingham Palace: Queen in hospital with stomach bug

The Queen has been admitted to a London hospital due to a stomach bug, Buckingham Palace has confirmed. The British monarch has been taken to King Edward VII Hospital “as a precaution”, the palace said.

The 86-year-old will be assessed for gastroenteritis symptoms during her stay, reports BBC News. The Queen was “in good spirits” as she was driven to hospital by private car earlier today (March 3), a palace spokesperson said.

Her official engagements this week will be cancelled or postponed, including her scheduled trip to Rome.

She is to remain in hospital under observation for “a few days”, the BBC’s royal correspondent Peter Hunt said.

The last time the monarch was in hospital was reportedly ten years ago.

Her illness was first reported on Saturday after she was forced to cancel a St David’s Day trip to Swansea.

The King Edward VII Hospital is the same private hospital where the Duchess of Cambridge was admitted for severe morning sickness in December, as well as when Prince Philip became ill with a bladder infection last summer.

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