Photo: BBC

London (People's Daily) - On Christmas Day the BBC aired its annual holiday message from Queen Elizabeth II.

Her Majesty paid special tribute to London and Manchester, two cities that suffered terror attacks this year, and later stressed the importance of family.

Photo: BBC

“Our thoughts and prayers are with all those who died and those who lost so much, and we are indebted to members of the emergency services who risked their own lives this past year saving others,” said the Queen.

Five terror attacks struck the UK during 2017, along with a tenement building fire that claimed almost 80 lives.

Photos of Queen Elizabeth II with her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh，were on display while she discussed her 70-year marriage to Prince Phillip and the unending support he has always given her.

Over the summer, Prince Philip, at the age of 96, officially retired from public duties.

Queen Elizabeth stressed how it didn’t matter if people were watching her holiday address on a laptop or smartphone, or on television, the one thing that will never change is family spending time together.

“Home is a place of warmth, familiarity, and love,” the Queen emphasized, and mentioned the royal family is looking forward to new additions in the coming year.

She referred to not only the third child from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge expected in April but also the princess-to-be, Meghan Markle, who will marry the Queen’s grandson, Prince Harry, in May.