Derbyshire photographer met the Queen two days before her death and took the last pictures of her

The Queen was "frail" but in "good spirits" when photographer Jane Barlow took the last public pictures of her.
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She had been dispatched to Balmoral to capture the moment when the monarch met the new prime minister, formally appointing Liz Truss to her new role.

While waiting for the Conservative leader to arrive at the Queen's Highland retreat, Jane, who comes from Belper, took some portraits.

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In true British style there was small talk about the weather, with dark skies and heavy rain overhead for much of the day. But Jane said of the Queen: "I got a lot of smiles from her."

The last photo of Queen Elizabeth was taken by photographer Jane BarlowThe last photo of Queen Elizabeth was taken by photographer Jane Barlow
The last photo of Queen Elizabeth was taken by photographer Jane Barlow

Ms Truss was then formally announced and came into the room, "and she greeted her with a big smile". With the Queen and the new Prime Minister in conversation, Jane was ushered out. Jane now lives in Scotland and works for PA but was a former Derby Telegraph photographer.

She said: "I've had so many lovely comments about the picture".

She added: "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.

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"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."

Jane Barlow. Photo by Lesley Martin/PA WireJane Barlow. Photo by Lesley Martin/PA Wire
Jane Barlow. Photo by Lesley Martin/PA Wire

Speaking about the Queen she said: "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."

That week saw Jane photograph the Queen as she had audiences with Nicola Sturgeon and Holyrood Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone, and as she took part in a number of official engagements, including the Ceremony of the Keys, which marks the start of the week of Royal engagements north of the border and the Reddendo Parade, involving the Royal Company of Archers, which functions as the monarch's ceremonial body guard in Scotland.