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Prince Charles Delivers Queen’s Speech for the First Time

Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (L), the Imperial State Crown (C), Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (R) and Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (rear C) proccess through the Royal Gallery during the State Opening of Parliament at the Houses of Parliament, in London, on May 10, 2022. (AFP)
Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (L), the Imperial State Crown (C), Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (R) and Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (rear C) proccess through the Royal Gallery during the State Opening of Parliament at the Houses of Parliament, in London, on May 10, 2022. (AFP)
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Prince Charles Delivers Queen’s Speech for the First Time

Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (L), the Imperial State Crown (C), Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (R) and Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (rear C) proccess through the Royal Gallery during the State Opening of Parliament at the Houses of Parliament, in London, on May 10, 2022. (AFP)
Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (L), the Imperial State Crown (C), Britain's Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (R) and Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (rear C) proccess through the Royal Gallery during the State Opening of Parliament at the Houses of Parliament, in London, on May 10, 2022. (AFP)

Britain's heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles and Prince William took center stage at the opening of parliament on Tuesday, replacing the 96-year-old Queen Elizabeth who missed the grand set-piece event for the first time in almost six decades.

With the queen forced to withdraw on Monday due to a recurrence of mobility issues, 73-year-old Charles arrived at the Palace of Westminster to read out the government's legislative agenda.

Charles, who had attended the opening of parliament alongside his mother in recent years, started reading out each bill by saying: "Her majesty's government will...".

The State Opening of Parliament is an event of huge pomp and pageantry which traditionally sees the queen traveling to the assembly in a State Coach, escorted by mounted soldiers in ceremonial uniform, while the Imperial State Crown and other regalia travel ahead in a carriage of their own.

The monarch dons the Robe of State before leading a procession to the House of Lords upper chamber where she sits on a throne and formally opens a new session of parliament, reading a speech written by the government outlining its legislative plans.

The queen has missed the occasion only twice during her 70-year reign - in 1959, and 1963, when she was pregnant with sons Andrew and Edward.

The queen, who has missed a number of public engagements since she was hospitalized for a night last October for an unspecified illness, had to issue a 'Letters Patent' to authorise Charles and William to carry out her role at the constitutional event.

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Truck Driver's Body Recovered from Huge Japan Sinkhole after 3 Months

Firefighters guard a vehicle carrying the body believed to be that of a male truck driver, found in a sewage pipe near the site of a road collapse that occurred on January 28, in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture on May 2, 2025. (Photo by JIJI Press / AFP)
Firefighters guard a vehicle carrying the body believed to be that of a male truck driver, found in a sewage pipe near the site of a road collapse that occurred on January 28, in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture on May 2, 2025. (Photo by JIJI Press / AFP)
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Truck Driver's Body Recovered from Huge Japan Sinkhole after 3 Months

Firefighters guard a vehicle carrying the body believed to be that of a male truck driver, found in a sewage pipe near the site of a road collapse that occurred on January 28, in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture on May 2, 2025. (Photo by JIJI Press / AFP)
Firefighters guard a vehicle carrying the body believed to be that of a male truck driver, found in a sewage pipe near the site of a road collapse that occurred on January 28, in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture on May 2, 2025. (Photo by JIJI Press / AFP)

Japanese rescuers have recovered the body of a truck driver who was swallowed by a huge sinkhole near Tokyo three months ago, an official said on Friday.

A road in the city of Yashio caved in during morning rush hour in late January while the 74-year-old man was driving his lorry on it.

The sinkhole, which was caused by corroded sewerage pipes, was reportedly 16 meters (52 feet) deep in February.

The search operation was hindered by unstable ground, which raised the risk of the chasm collapsing further and prevented rescuers from approaching the area where the driver was believed to be buried, AFP reported.

Since then the hole has grown to at least 40 metres across, almost the length of an Olympic swimming pool.

A slope later allowed rescuers to send heavy equipment into the hole while 1.2 million residents were asked to temporarily cut back on showers and laundry to prevent leaking sewage from hindering the operation.

Walls were built to ensure safety, regional officials told AFP.

"We discovered a man inside the truck cabin and confirmed his death, then passed the incident to police," a spokesman for the local fire department said Friday.

A police spokesman said investigations were under way, including officially confirming the body's identity.

"Until the very end of his life, my father, who had a strong heart, must have been hoping to come home alive -- fighting fear and pain -- which makes me feel a tightening in my heart," a family member of the unnamed driver said in a statement to Japanese media.

"I can't believe or accept the fact that my father, who was loved by everyone, suddenly disappeared," the statement said.

The number of sinkholes in Japan is rising, topping 10,000 in fiscal 2022. Many of these are sewerage-related in urban areas, a land ministry probe shows.