Queen attends Booker Prize reception in first public engagement since illness

The Queen has arrived at a Booker Prize reception in her first public engagement since falling ill with a chest infection.

Camilla joined shortlisted authors at Clarence House on Tuesday afternoon and the winner of the prestigious literary prize will be announced in the evening.

It is her first public engagement since she contracted the seasonal bug following her long-haul tour to Australia and Samoa two-and-a-half weeks ago.

Camilla will be there for a shorter period than planned, joining guests only for a discussion and a group photograph.

The Queen’s illness forced her to miss gathering with the King, the Princess of Wales and the rest of the royal family at the annual Remembrance Sunday at the Cenotaph, and the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall the evening before.

Camilla is an avid reader and patron of a number of literary organisations, and last year hosted the six 2023 Booker Prize hopefuls at Clarence House.

Her Reading Room project, launched during lockdown, has grown into a major initiative which now has a podcast attracting leading writers and a literary festival in its second year.

This year’s Booker Prize shortlist features the largest number of women authors in its 55-year history, with five women and one man.

The texts are James by Percival Everett, Orbital by Samantha Harvey, Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner, Held by Anne Michaels, The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden and Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood.

The winner will receive £50,000, in addition to the £2,500 awarded to each of the six shortlisted authors.

Recent winners of the award include Bernardine Evaristo, Margaret Atwood, Douglas Stuart, Damon Galgut, Shehan Karunatilaka and Paul Lynch.