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Queen Elizabeth II, the United Kingdom’s 94-year-old monarch, has told her subjects to stop being selfish and “think of others rather than yourselves” and get a COVID-19 vaccine.
The head of state was speaking on a video call with health professionals and said “it didn’t hurt at all.”
She joins a list of famous people such as musician Elton John and actor Michael Caine in encouraging the public to get vaccinated when given the opportunity.
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Almost 20 million people in the U.K. have received at least one vaccine dose. But many are nervous about being inoculated because of blogs they have read on social media.
Watch: The Queen says COVID-19 shot doesn’t hurt
The queen said: “It is obviously difficult for people if they’ve never had a vaccine because they ought to think about other people other than themselves.
“It was very quick, and I’ve had lots of letters from people who have been very surprised by how easy it was to get the vaccine. And the jab — it didn’t hurt at all.
“Once you’ve had a vaccine you have a feeling of you know, you’re protected, which I think is very important and as far as I could make out it was quite harmless.”
She made her comments as her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, 99, is recovering in hospital from an infection. The illness isn’t COVID-19 related.
- Separately, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, 66, has said she would not take the AstraZeneca–Oxford vaccine. In Germany it is only authorized for those under the age of 65.
