Britain's Queen Elizabeth spoke of the loss of her husband Prince Philip on Saturday, remembering the "mischievous twinkle" in his eyes in an unusually personal Christmas message.

The 95-year-old monarch said that while Christmas was a time of happiness for many, it could be hard for those who had lost loved ones.

This year especially, the queen said she understood why, having lost Philip in April after 73 years of marriage.

She said she was spending the holiday season with "one familiar laugh missing."

Emotional tribute to late husband

The queen reminisced fondly about the prince, who was 99 when he died, saying his "sense of service, intellectual curiosity and capacity to squeeze fun out of any situation were all irrepressible."

The monarch said she was "proud beyond words" that Charles and his eldest son William are following in Philip's footsteps in "taking seriously our stewardship of the environment."

Despite her own loss, the queen said her family was a "source of great happiness," noting that she had welcomed four great-grandchildren this year.

She also acknowledged the impact of the virus, saying that this year "COVID again means we can't celebrate quite as we would have wished."

As the highly transmissible omicron variant spreads across the UK, the queen decided against her usual Christmas visit to Sandringham, a royal estate in eastern England.

Instead, she is spending the holidays at Windsor Castle, west of London, where she was joined by some members of her family, including Prince Charles and his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall.

The monarch also said she was looking forward to her Platinum Jubilee next year, marking 70 years since she acceded to the throne following the death of her father, George VI.

As well as Philip's passing, Queen Elizabeth has had health issues of her own, cutting down on travel and work sincespending a night in the hospital in October.

Since then, she has undertaken light duties including virtual audiences with diplomats and weekly conversations with Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Intruder arrested at Windsor

Meanwhile, a man was arrested on Saturday after entering the grounds of Windsor Castle. He is being held on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon, police said.

The 19-year-old did not enter any buildings and security processes were triggered within moments, a police statement said.

Thames Valley Police Superintendent Rebecca Mears said members of the royal family had been informed about the incident, which took place at about 0830 UTC.

Charles, Camilla and other royal family members were pictured later in the morning arriving for a Christmas church service at St George's Chapel within the Windsor Castle complex.

mm/aw (AFP, AP, Reuters)