he Queen saw the funny side when a cell phone rang at a pivotal moment when she officially opened a £22 million hospice building.
The 96-year-old monarch, accompanied by the Princess Royal, made a rare public appearance outside Windsor Castleto formally launch the new home of the Thames Hospice, which has welcomed royals for decades.
Just as she was introduced to Graham White and his wife Pat, who has stage 4 cancer and is receiving respite care at the center in virgin headhis phone rang and he reached into his pocket to turn it off.
The Queen quipped, “Typically, a phone rings immediately,” and Mr. White sheepishly said it was his son who rang.
Ms. White sat as she talked to the Queen, who stood and leaned on her now-familiar walking stick, and afterwards the 63-year-old described the encounter as “very emotional”, adding: “This is a memory I will cherish.”
She joked about her husband’s phone ringing, saying, ‘I could have killed him! People think the Queen is a stiff upper lip, but she has a sense of humor.”
Mr White, 67, of Sandhurst, Berkshire, said: “I turned my wife’s phone off and I could have sworn mine was off – that was a little embarrassing.”
His wife said: “The Queen said the building is beautiful and she showed a great interest in the various cancer treatments and hoped that the new building would help all cancer patients here.
The former Windsor site of Thames Hospice was opened by the Queen in 1987 and previous visitors have included Diana, Princess of Wales, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
The new hospice building now sits next to a picturesque lake, surrounded by trees in nearby Maidenhead. It features an open reception area with an airy atrium, cafe and shop.