UK's Queen seen standing after missing Remembrance service with bad back

The monarch was unable to attend Cenotaph wreath-laying ceremony after suffering back sprain

Queen Elizabeth II receives General Sir Nick Carter, Chief of the Defence Staff, during an audience in the Oak Room at Windsor Castle. PA

Queen Elizabeth II, 95, has carried out her first official engagement after missing the Remembrance Sunday service as she met the head of the military in a face-to-face audience.

She welcomed Gen Sir Nick Carter, Chief of the Defence Staff, to Windsor Castle on Wednesday, as he prepares to step down from his role at the end of the month.

The queen, who pulled out of the Cenotaph service three days ago due to a sprained back, was pictured standing as she greeted Gen Sir Nick in the castle’s Oak Room.

Dressed in a green, orange and white floral dress and wearing a string of pearls, the monarch smiled and shook hands with Gen Sir Nick as they began chatting.

The Oak Room is the queen’s sitting room where she spends much of her time. It also doubles as her office.

It is the first time in nearly a month that the monarch has been pictured carrying out an in-person engagement since she hosted a reception at Windsor on October 19.

She held a face to face audience with Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week but was not pictured doing so.

The Queen at 95 — in pictures