The death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, 2022,
sent shockwaves around the world. Millions of people learned that Britain's
longest-reigning monarch had died through an official announcement from
Buckingham Palace.
But one experienced royal photographer believes he
began to understand that something was seriously wrong several hours before the
news became public.
Arthur Edwards, the veteran photographer who spent
more than five decades documenting the British Royal Family, was in Scotland
when the Queen's health deteriorated at Balmoral Castle. He was not inside the
royal residence, but a series of unexpected developments, cancelled engagements
and a surprising change to the royal family's travel plans raised his
suspicions.
What happened next became one of the most memorable
experiences of his long career.
Edwards later described how he pieced together the
clues, why the movements of King Charles III's staff caught his attention, and
how a seemingly ordinary taxi journey helped him realise that the Queen's
condition was far more serious than the public had been told.
His recollections offer a rare behind-the-scenes
perspective on the final hours of a monarch whose death marked the end of an
extraordinary chapter in British history.
The Royal Photographer Who Had
Spent More Than 50 Years Behind the Camera
Arthur Edwards was no ordinary visitor to royal events.
As a photographer for The Sun, he spent decades following the
Royal Family, documenting state occasions, overseas tours, royal weddings,
public celebrations and private moments that occasionally became part of the
historical record.
His long career gave him an unusually close view of
the people behind the institution.
He photographed Queen Elizabeth II throughout much of
her reign and also documented the lives of Prince Philip, King Charles, Queen
Camilla, Prince William and other senior royals.
That experience meant Edwards was familiar with royal
routines.
He knew how engagements were organised, how members
of the royal household travelled and how unusual changes to official schedules
could attract attention.
In September 2022, however, he found himself in
Scotland at a moment when the normal rhythm of royal life was about to change
dramatically.
The Dinner Invitation That Put Him
Near the Royal Family
The day before the Queen's death, Edwards had
travelled to Dumfries House in Scotland.
His assignment was to photograph Dr Freda Newlands,
who had been named Doctor of the Year in The
Sun's annual health awards.
The event also included a surprise appearance by
Prince Charles, who was presenting the awards.
Charles noticed Edwards taking photographs and
invited him to attend a dinner that evening.
The gathering included approximately 40 guests and
appeared to be a relatively ordinary royal engagement.
According to Edwards, he attended without knowing the
full extent of the Queen's deteriorating health.
There was no public announcement suggesting that the
monarch's condition had reached its final stage.
For the photographer, the evening was another
opportunity to document the royal family.
But the following morning brought a development that
would change his understanding of what was happening at Balmoral.
The Unexpected Morning Departure
That Raised Questions
The next morning, Edwards was waiting in the hotel
lobby for a taxi that would take him to the airport.
He expected to return home after completing his
assignment.
Then he noticed members of Charles's staff arriving
in the lobby.
Their presence surprised him because, as Edwards
understood it, they were not scheduled to leave Scotland for several more days.
He asked why their plans had suddenly changed.
One member of staff reportedly replied:
“It's all changed, we're going to Balmoral now.”
That short explanation immediately caught his
attention.
The change was especially significant because
Balmoral was where Queen Elizabeth was staying.
Edwards began to suspect that the situation
surrounding the monarch's health was more serious than he had initially
realised.
A second detail soon strengthened that suspicion.
The Taxi Driver's Remark That
Confirmed His Suspicions
As Edwards waited for his taxi, the driver apologised
for arriving late.
He explained that he had mistakenly gone to Dumfries
House before returning to collect the photographer.
During that journey, the driver had reportedly seen
Prince Charles getting into a helicopter.
For Edwards, the detail connected several
developments.
Charles's staff were suddenly travelling to Balmoral.
The Prince of Wales had apparently already departed by helicopter. And the
Queen had recently missed an important public event because of concerns about
her health.
The photographer began to understand that the royal
household was responding to a serious situation.
In his account for The
Sun, Edwards described how he started making enquiries after
hearing the news.
King Charles and Arthur have struck up a good bond (Image: Eamonn M.
McCormack - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The Cancelled Engagements That
Added to the Concern
Edwards also recalled that Queen Elizabeth had been
too tired to attend the Braemar Gathering the previous Saturday.
The event was an important fixture in the royal
calendar, particularly because of the monarch's longstanding connection with
Scotland.
Her absence attracted attention, although it did not
immediately establish how serious her condition was.
Edwards also said that Queen Camilla's scheduled
engagements in Airdrie and Galashiels had been cancelled.
Taken together, the developments appeared significant
to someone who had spent decades observing royal schedules.
The Queen's absence from the Braemar event, the
cancellation of Camilla's engagements and the sudden movement of Charles's
staff all suggested that normal arrangements had been disrupted.
However, these clues were not the same as an official
medical announcement.
At that stage, the public had not been informed that
the Queen was approaching the end of her life.
Edwards was interpreting a series of developments from
outside Balmoral, rather than receiving a confirmed medical briefing.
Six Hours Later, Buckingham Palace
Announced the Queen's Death
Queen Elizabeth II died peacefully at Balmoral Castle
on September 8, 2022, aged 96.
The announcement came after a statement from
Buckingham Palace earlier that day had expressed concern about her health and
confirmed that senior members of the Royal Family were travelling to Scotland.
Her death brought an extraordinary reign to an end.
Elizabeth had become Queen in 1952, aged just 25,
following the death of her father, King George VI.
Over the next 70 years, she witnessed enormous
political, cultural and technological changes.
She worked with 15 British prime ministers, met world
leaders from across generations and became one of the most recognisable figures
in modern history.
Her death also marked the beginning of a new reign.
Charles immediately became King, while the royal
family entered a period of national mourning and prepared for the state
funeral.
For Edwards, the events of that day remained deeply
personal.
He had spent more than half a century photographing
the woman whose death had just changed the monarchy forever.
Why Balmoral Was So Important to
Queen Elizabeth
The Queen died at Balmoral, the Scottish royal estate
that had been one of her favourite places for much of her life.
The property had a special connection with the Royal
Family dating back to the reign of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.
For Elizabeth, Balmoral offered a different
atmosphere from Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle.
It was associated with family holidays, outdoor
activities and a quieter style of royal life.
She regularly spent time there during the summer,
enjoying the Scottish countryside and the privacy that the estate provided.
That personal connection made the location of her
death particularly poignant.
Edwards expressed the hope that she had been reunited
with Prince Philip, her husband of more than 73 years, who had died in April 2021.
His words reflected the sense of loss felt by people
who had followed the Queen's life for decades.
A Photographer's Memories of Queen
Elizabeth and Prince Philip
Edwards's recollections of the Queen extend far
beyond September 2022.
His career allowed him to photograph the monarch
during countless official engagements and overseas journeys.
He also witnessed moments that offered glimpses of
the couple away from the formal demands of royal life.
In his upcoming autobiography, Cup Of Tea, Arthur?,
Edwards shares memories from his decades covering the Royal Family.
Among the experiences he discusses are journeys
aboard aircraft with Elizabeth and Prince Philip.
The couple reportedly enjoyed completing crossword
puzzles together during flights, providing a small example of the familiar
companionship that characterised their long marriage.
Such details offer a contrast to the highly formal
public image associated with the monarchy.
For photographers like Edwards, these moments helped
build a more complete picture of the people behind the royal titles.
His New Autobiography Looks Back
on a Lifetime of Royal History
The publication of Cup
Of Tea, Arthur? gives Edwards an opportunity to revisit some of the
most significant assignments of his career.
His work has taken him around the world, following
the Royal Family during state visits, international tours and major national
events.
He has witnessed the monarchy change across
generations, from the final decades of Elizabeth's reign to Charles's accession
to the throne.
His relationship with members of the Royal Family has
also developed over time.
Having photographed Charles and Camilla for many
years, Edwards is understood to have established a familiar professional
relationship with the couple.
His memoir therefore offers more than a collection of
photographs and royal anecdotes.
It provides the perspective of someone who repeatedly
witnessed major moments in the monarchy's modern history.
The Final Clues Before a Historic
Announcement
What makes Edwards's account particularly striking is
the way several seemingly unrelated details came together.
A royal dinner at Dumfries House appeared routine.
The following morning, the sudden departure of
Charles's staff suggested that plans had changed.
A taxi driver's remark about seeing Charles board a
helicopter added another clue.
The Queen's absence from the Braemar Gathering and
the cancellation of Camilla's engagements provided further context.
For an experienced royal photographer, the
combination was difficult to ignore.
Edwards says he realised that the Queen was fading
before the public announcement was made.
But his story is best understood as a personal
recollection of the warning signs he noticed, not evidence that he had access
to an official medical prognosis.
The distinction matters because the final hours of
Queen Elizabeth II remain an important historical moment, and the details
surrounding her health should be treated carefully.
A Final Chapter in an
Extraordinary Reign
Queen Elizabeth's death was more than the passing of
a much-loved public figure.
It marked the conclusion of a 70-year reign that had
shaped the modern British monarchy.
For Arthur Edwards, it also represented the loss of
the monarch he had spent much of his professional life photographing.
His memories of the final day reveal how quickly
ordinary royal arrangements changed as the situation at Balmoral became
increasingly serious.
The photographer was not at the castle, and he did
not witness the Queen's final moments.
Instead, he recognised the significance of events
unfolding around him: a sudden change of plans, an unexpected helicopter
departure and the cancellation of official engagements.
Hours later, the world received the news.
His account now forms part of the wider record of
September 8, 2022—a day when a private family tragedy became a defining moment
in modern royal history.
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