This story honestly made me tear up. I make jokes about how Queen Elizabeth is at the point where she doesn’t GAF about much of anything besides corgis and horses, but this just shows the opposite is true: the Queen cares. A LOT. And she’s good at caring. The Queen made a surprise visit to the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital today to visit some of the little girls who were injured in the terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena. These are the children who were the targets of the suicide bomber: little girls who just wanted to see Ariana Grande perform. They’re little Ariana fans. And it’s heartbreaking. So what did the Queen do? She asked them about Ariana Grande, music, and whether they liked concerts.
Queen Elizabeth made a surprise visit to a children’s hospital that is treating many of the young victims of the horrific tragedy that followed the Ariana Grande concert on Monday, telling one patient that the suicide bombing was “dreadful” and “very wicked.” The monarch arrived at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital at around 11:20 a.m. Thursday, shortly after Britain had fallen silent for a minute in tribute to the dead and injured as well as their families and loved ones.
Queen Elizabeth told 14-year-old Evie Mills, who received the concert tickets a birthday present, and her parents, “It’s dreadful. Very wicked. To target that sort of thing,” The Telegraph reports.
The Queen reassured them that “everyone is united” following the attack. She then told the teen that she thought Ariana Grande was a “very good singer,” adding: “She sounds very, very good.”
The Queen also met with Millie Robson, 15, who wore an Ariana Grande T-shirt as her surprise guest asked if she enjoyed the concert prior to the attack. The teen then shared that she had won VIP passes and met the pop star backstage. The royal visitor wished Millie a quick recovery.
“It’s not something you expect at all,” the Queen told Mille’s father, who was waiting at the exit of the arena when the bomb exploded. Emily Murrell, 12, missed the Queen’s visit due to a surgery. Her mother Ruth, who was also recovering in the hospital after being hit with shrapnel when the bomb went off, said her daughter would be disappointed. Queen Elizabeth also met 12-year-old Amy Barlow and her mother, Kathy.
In a brief tour, the Queen met doctors, nurses and others who have helped save lives in the days since Monday’s attack. The Queen also met the head of the National Health Service trust and the chief nurse and the chief executive.
“The awful thing was that everyone was so young. The age of them,” she told one member of the staff. The hospital is one of the most important in the U.K. and treats 200,000 people a year.
This really shows the Queen’s compassion and heart. I love that she was telling those little girls that she thinks Ariana Grande is a good singer too. That’s the way to get on their level and talk to them about something they enjoy. Beyond that, it’s smart politically – the royal family has always been used as symbols of unity and national strength. It would have been great to see some of the younger royals at the hospital too, but I think the Queen probably wanted to do this on her own.
Photos courtesy of Getty, Pacific Coast News.
Can anyone imagine Cheeto Mussolini doing this? Anyone?
TQ is simply marvelous.
I mean, if I was in a hospital bed and Cheeto showed up (which would be very strange considering I’m Canadian) I can’t imagine being thrilled AT ALL. It’d be so incredibly awkward, I’m sure – him attempting anything similar to bedside manner.
The Queen on the other hand – reminds me of my gram a bit, and would be very welcome. TQ IS marvelous. She’s a badass old gal, and I get such a kick out of her.
If I were in a hospital bed and that tiny fisted tyrant showed up, I’d hit the morphine pump and pray it was a trauma induced nightmare.
aang – LOL
I would accuse him of harassment and hold the hospital responsible as well.
(They can’t bring visitors in without consent, do they?)
I agree. I think this was a very emotionally intelligent thing for her to do; it also struck me as coming from her heart. I suspect that Her Maj was honestly shocked by the reaction of the British people after Diana died, when she was seen to be not doing enough, not responding, perhaps even not caring. I am sure she _did_ care. Her recent action perhaps shows how much she learned from that. Bless her!
Makes us even. I was honestly shocked at her reaction, or lack of, to Diana’s death. It took a week, and the local papers to call the Royal family out before they did or said anything. Remember the headline, WHERE IS THE HEART IN THE HOUSE OF WINDSOR?
The Windsors were in Scotland comforting two young boys who had just been bereaved. That is where their heart was. It wasn’t the reaction of the British people it was the press trying to build up mass hysteria. I remember seeing tv interviewers completely dismissing anyone who tried to say anything sensible at the time. I found it totally bemusing then and I don’t know anyone who had opinions like those that were being fed to us by the media. It was also the time of Tony Blair and he was milking it for all it was worth.
Correct me please if I’m wrong Brit Celebitches, but my understanding is the Queen just like her Dad before her has always shown compassion and visited her citizens. I remember seeing pictures of her dressing up well and going out to visit her people who have suffered from tragedy or at war zones. The Princess Diana thing was the exception rather than the rule and it was a personal family beef. People are re-writing history.
As an American, that is why I have always respected her even though I have no respect for Monarchies. She works her butt off and is always of service to her people. She is the definition of a public servant.
I’m glad she left the younger royals out because they would not know what to say to those kids like the Queen did (with the exception of Harry). They might be as awful as Agent Orange in their self-absorbeness. But to be fair Trump would have been worse, bringing post-cards of his electoral college wins or his autobiography. Poor children.
@grumpy, they could have said something. A message acknowledging the tragedy. The whole country was grieving that death along with those two young boys.
Honestly the Queen was very unfairly treated by the public and the media after Diana’s death. Her first priority was no doubt to William and Harry and making sure they were kept out of the public eye. It was a harrowing week for all involved, even for Charles, who brought her back to England, and it was far easier to ensure privacy outside of London. Why would you expose those young boys to the demanding public?
And they had to sort out the public format with the Spencers.
What happened in the wake of Diana’s death was this: HM stuck to strict protocol. Her miscalculation was that while protocol dictated Diana was no longer royal due to the divorce, the public saw it very differently. HM saw it as a private matter and acted accordingly. The public felt they had lost a princess and saw HM as ABANDONING protocol and not doing her duty by assuaging the country’s grief (as, for example, she has done her duty in assuaging the country’s grief by turning up to the hospital for this visit).
This is the unspoken pact in a constitutional monarchy. It’s subtle but powerful and I think many Americans don’t always see the cues. Why would they? At the end of the day, the monarchy exists by public consent. If it doesn’t match up to public expectation of this unspoken pact, the pitchforks come out. HM abandoning the public perception of protocol over the death of Diana brought out the pitchforks. W&K being useless, lazy arses doesn’t bring out the pitchforks because, in a strange way, we expect them to be a bit wanky and spoiled. They’re royals. It is hard to explain to Americans the difference between these two things but they are, indeed, very different. It’s all tied in with the British notion of what is, and what is not, “proper”.
Just as Lady D said the Queen was too slow to react, seeing the wave of grief across the whole world she should have acknowledged it more quickly by making a statement instead of staying silent. They went to Church in Scotland just after the news of Diana’s death broke and there was no mention of it in the service , how bizarre, a Christian service! The Queen was forced to come down to London, fly the flag at half mast on Buck House and acknowledge the grief of her citizens. The Queen has led an exemplary life, apart from being a rather cold mother (not really her fault its part of being royal) , and the way she reacted to the death of Diana was really the only major blip on her CV.
He’d probably hand out “MAGA Trump 2028!” hats, urge them to vote for him in the next five elections and leave. Then he’d tell the press it was amazing.
Way to go, ER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can’t fathom The Cheeto visiting anyone in the hospital. If he came within earshot of me, all hell would break loose.
You must have missed Trump visiting wounded vets at Walter Reed recently. He surprised them with their Purple Heart medals, which he presented personally.
Presumably, combat veterans are up to the challenge of a Trump visit.
Then he told them they were lucky to get the Purple Hearts because he is an imbecile.
Trump probably would hand out Electoral Maps, before leaving.
From one Purple Heart recipient to another, right?
22 are dead, many of whom are children. And here you are making it about politics. Pull your head out.
seriously, it’s not really about politics. it’s just stating the facts that if the orange f*ckhead dared to show his face he’d make it all about himself. it aint that hard to see.
Yoon. No facts were stated. OP took a post about QEII trying to spread some cheer amongst suffering British children and made it about US politics. So, she’s not only off-topic, but clearly values her political blatherings above showing sympathy for injured and dead children. YOU need to ask yourself why this is hard for YOU to see.
Seriously, I was tearing up too. What a lovely, compassionate thing to do. My hat is off to Her Majesty (though my hat is nowhere near as fab as her orange one, heh.)
Good on Her Maj. The healing power of a Queen. Lovely story side to an horrific event.
The Queen shows how it is done.
+1
This made me cry. Everything about this attack makes me want to cry.
Me too, on both counts.
yep.
Her children (except Anne, she works a lot) and grandchilren could learn a lot from her work ethic.
I was thinking the same thing: neither of the three dared to go to see the children at the hospital…
Anne has nothing on Charles when it comes to work ethic. They do roughly the same number of engagements per year, then she goes home. Charles does Duchy, Prince’s Trust, Dumfries House, and manages the private royal properties on top of that.
I am not sure I would welcome sour faced Anne at my hospital bedside, also over the years she has had a reputation for being very rude to well meaning people. I just can’t fathom why people like her.
Aw, bless her heart. I should be this spry and active when I’m her age.
Agreed! : ) I hope I am the same at 91!
No kidding!! She went to a couple of horse farms to decompress afterwards. Nothing like some horses or foals to lift the spirits.
She is an inspiration. God save the Queen.
She is pure class and has a very good heart. I love her outfit! I love the bright, cheery colors she wore for this visit. The woman is 91 years old. Her work ethic is beyond impressive.
I was watching her visit on telly in between doing (trying to do) some very important stuff(:-))
She was amazing in the way she reached out to the girls and their parents, not to mention the hospital staff – from surgeons to orderlies.
I also liked her questions to the teenagers ‘ Did you enjoy the concert?’.
This made the girls giggle and (I imagine) made them feel more at ease. 🙂
Her outfit and hat make me smile, so bright and cheerful.
Yes, she looked great in that outfit.
Wow. This is wonderful
Charles/Camilla and William/Kate don’t have the same warmth as HM.
Actually I think Camilla does have this warmth and way with people too.
I agree, particularly shown in her work with sexual assault victims.
Hmm…I wonder what her stepsons would have to say about that.
Charles has a good line in self-deprecation. He’s not naturally a people person, but he’s been doing this a long time and he’s good at it.
@ Happymom and Tina, I think you are both right.
Charles and Camilla are actually very good with people. I met Charles way back in the 90s and he was easy and warm and genuine with everyone. William and Kate have not yet developed the same personal, un-selfconscious manner.
William is painfully shy and Kate does not help much with this.
She’s a treasure. I love that she wore such a bright, happy outfit too.
It’s a lovely thing for QE to do, and besides that I love her blue/orange outfit. She looks so cute in that combo!
Queen Elizabeth was the age of these girls during the Blitz.
I always think of that too. She is tough.
And being an ambulance driver during the war, she has witnessed such devastation before. I think this is why she chose to go herself instead of sending one of the younger royals: she gets it.
I went to countless concerts in my life and I can’t help but think this could’ve been me. It’s unimaginable the fear and anger that these girls and parents feel . I look at this visit like a grandmother checking in on her grandchildren . The attack was gut wrenching and you can’t undue or understand something so horrific , but if you can give some comfort you should and that’s what the Queen did.
That was very kind of her and it broke my heart to see it.
BTW Did anyone else see that one Trump supporter on Twitter call Ariana Grande a spoiled and entitled brat because she didn’t visit the victims at the hospital? Apparently Ariana, a victim herself, acted entitled when she went back home to Florida instead of visiting the victims in the hospital and because she didn’t denounce the attack. People on Twitter let her have it….but she persisted like the evil monster she is.
Unfortunately, many people on the Internet wrote that Ariana should have visited the victims and even donate some of the money from the Manchester concert. Not just Trump supporters.
She’s just a kid herself, FFS.
Ariana reached out to all the victims’ families and will pay for the funeral expenses. I’m not sure what more people want from her. It wasn’t her fault that this happened. People are ridiculous.
I don’t think that’s confirmed, a fan posted it. But Arianna isn’t obligated to do anything.
In any case, the various appeals have raised £5m+ for the victims already.
Let her be. Shock, guilt, on top of the need to make decisions. She is likely to respond but not instantly. Above all, it’s not her fault and it wasn’t about her.
When I read HM’s comments to the girls in the hospital, I wondered if that was her way of thanking AG for being kind about the situation. Has she ever publicly promoted a pop star before?
I’ve always thought she was a Beatles fan. Royal Variety Performance in ’63, MBEs, Paul knighted before anyone else (Mick, Elton, Rod Stewart). And of course, the Queen Mother was a massive Cliff Richard fan.
I think the Queens music tastes are more for the popular songs of the 40s and 50s.
Love QE she’s so sweet. Nice of her to get on their level and no spout endless platitudes. Good indicator of how she is as a person
I teared up, too. It’s not hard these days.
Got that one right.
The parents of several of the child victims were also injured and the hospital, which is usually children only, treated those parents itself and kept child and parent together in adjacent beds/same rooms. That made me tear up this morning!
According to Auntie Beeb, ER also made sure to meet hospital porters, administrators and cleaners to thank them. Not just the medical staff. You have to hand it to her. She knows how to do visits like this.
And, as I speak, the Orange One is using his commiseration speech at the NATO meeting to complain that some countries aren’t contributing enough military spend and moaning about the cost of the HQ. SIGH.
@Sixer, I really love HM at moments like this. She doesn’t put a foot wrong. And I have to say that Charles and Camilla can do it too. It doesn’t bear thinking about what W&K would do in this situation.
I am still reeling from this morning’s Daily Mail disclosure of little Saffie’s last words (which they subsequently deleted). It’s rare that my twitter feed (I follow DM reporter, not the DM itself) makes me burst into tears. Dacre is utter, utter scum.
I also do the DM Reporter thing. I will not give that evil entity clicks. It’s no surprise we have the least trusted press of all European countries, is it?
If the BRF is good for anything, it is good for being a unifying and apolitical force at times such as this. Which, as you say, is really the significant thing about the uselessness of W&K.
Exactly. Do you remember Thatchcards, where people would indicate they didn’t want to be visited by Mrs T in hospital? Very few people would say that about HM, even republicans.
OMG! YES!
Even I wouldn’t say it and I’m as republican as they come.
@Tina…Thatchcards!….I never knew about those, how funny…
@Sixer, I am getting increasingly sick of DM but I post on it because we need to counter some of the nonsense that goes on. There are a lot of gullible readers who actually innocently believe some of the manufactured stories and others who go straight to the comments to be fed more lies by the clever trolls.
How about a “Murder on the Orient Express” situation in which all the European dignitaries conspire to deal with him.
Honest to goodness, that speech was embarrassing even by his standards. He even told off NATO for its immigration position. NATO is a military alliance. It doesn’t HAVE an immigration position! Presumably, he meant the EU and not NATO. And the EU has freedom of movement between member nations but no single immigration policy for other nations. Immigration policy is a domestic matter for individual EU countries.
We. Need. Murder. On. The. Orient. Express.
This was beautifully handled by the Queen. Hospital staff rarely receive acknowledgement for what they do in times of crisis. And the way she reached out to the girls, making them feel more at ease with her, talking about their interests, discussing how much they enjoyed the actual concert – that will help them to recover, to go on.
And I can’t apologize enough for our big, rude orange monster
There are occasions when even I can concede that having a royal for head of state is a boon.
No apologies necessary!
I am a small-r republican but I think the world of the queen. I think growing up during the war has made her far more empathetic and sensitive than any of the other parasites in that family (I think Harry, having been in war zones with “regular” people, is the only one who comes close). I always watch any documentary on her and her ease with “regular” people at her garden parties, etc. is remarkable.
I still think of the speech she made after 9-11 – “grief is the price we pay for love.” She was clearly affected by that tragedy, her eyes were welling up.
I wish the rest of them would take lessons but I think this is something you are born with or pick up at a young age.
Yes, Elizabeth R is one of a kind.
Totally tearing up right now
I just went to a really eye-opening presentation on Churchill and the Royals which covered his service under Victoria all the way up to QEII. I must say I have a new found respect for both Churchill and the Queen especially for what they both contributed to the War effort. I had no idea that the Nazis had bombed various parts of Britain nightly for about 4 years. But the presentation really highlighted the resilience and courage Churchill and the Royal Family instilled in the people. How every morning people came out to their city in the rubble but got on with life. The King, Queen Mum, and Elizabeth would often be among the people, helping.
I just admire that principle of duty over idleness. I believe (and so did the historian who did the presentation) that QEII is a good monarch because she had the guidance and tutelage not only of her parents but specifically Churchill. He gave her the true preparation from an early age of all the things that would be expected of her. It is too bad that current Royals do not have his guidance as well.
Here’s a little piece of non-posh WWI blitz spirit for you, Millie. I think you’ll like it!
http://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/articles/the-dead-end-kids-of-the-london-blitz/
You’re going to make me cry, Sixer. What a story.
Thank you for sharing this Sixer! Those kids are truly an inspiration.
You’re welcome. It’s my favourite WWII story!
And what about those heroic homeless men who helped get girls out of the rubble and tried to stop the bleeding? Amazing guys. So many people are/have been really wonderful.
But where is Grande? She should show up and make these girls feel better.
I think she might need a moment herself. She looked pretty traumatized in those Daily Mail pictures.
I had never heard of her before this terrible incident but Ariana is a victim too, she must feel terrible even though it was not her fault. She will never in her life be able to perform in public without remembering what happened. Leave her alone.
I’m sure she will contact them. I believe she already offered to pay for the funerals. Try and remember that she’s young, and was there also. I understand the wanting to get home immediately and be with her family in her own home. I am sure she will do right by the victims.
@SEHAR7 Please take a set somewhere with that ridiculous comment.
@Cynicalann
(I am sure she will do right by the victims.)
This was not her fault, nor is she responsible for what happened, so their is no she will do “right by” tge victims. If she does something then so be it if she doesn’t then so be it.
God save the Queen!
As an American, I know she’s not “my” Queen. But sometimes I feel as if she belongs to the world. Whenever I think back on her history, over so many decades, I’m truly in awe. She has seen so much war, tragedy and heartbreak befall her citizens, yet she’s been able to survive and be a force to reckon with when need be. And she finds a way to unite, even in dark times.
At her age, I’d want to just crawl in a hole and hide. I read a lot of the criticism of the younger Royals here, and I don’t dare say I understand a lot of it. Not that it’s unjustified, I’m just not that knowledgeable of what their roles are. I know they aren’t meeting expectations. But as an onlooker, my feeling is that she wanted to be the one to do this. Her face at the hospital means a lot more. Truly, don’t mean to speak out of turn. It’s just as the head of the family, I think it was important to her to be the one to visit first.
I admire her strength and I hope the victims she visited were able to feel just a tiny bit better after meeting her. Sometimes it’s the little things we hear or experience in desperate times that keep us going. Prayers to all of them and the first responders, who must be going through their own bit of hell right now.
You are quite right The Queen has world wide respect, partly due to her longevity. She is the only monarch recognised by her title alone and not her name, everyone in the world knows ‘The Queen’, which is quite unique and reflects her standing in the world.
You guys are so strange. If Kate made these inane comments (do you like concerts?) you’d be ripping her one right now.
Nice the queen went though.
Nail. On. Head.
I adore the Queen, she is our Grandmother Queen and is a compassionate and caring individual who has, as she said when she took the throne, dedicated her life to our service.