Royal photographer who met with Queen two days before death reveals what she said to her

PA photographer Jane Barlow took the last public pictures of Britain’s longest-serving monarch as she met new Prime Minister Liz Truss at Balmoral.

Jane, a royal photographer for six years, said the Queen was  “frail” but in “good spirits”.

She said: "I've had so many lovely comments about the picture. It's a real privilege to be able to take that picture, an honour and a privilege. It's like that for a lot of our job.

"I was there to photograph her meeting the new Prime Minister but for me the best picture was the one of the Queen on her own. And it has obviously become more significant now."

PA (Image: PA)

While waiting for the Conservative leader to arrive at the Queen’s Highland retreat, Barlow took some portraits.

In true British style there was small talk about the weather, with dark skies and heavy rain overhead for much of the day.

But Barlow, who has been a staff photographer with the PA news agency in Scotland for six years, said of the Queen: “I got a lot of smiles from her.”

Speaking of the Queen, she added: She certainly did look more frail than when I photographed her in the summer. When she came up for Holyrood Week at the time they were telling me she would do one, perhaps two engagements, but she did quite a lot that week."