Queen launches Royal Channel on YouTube

Queen Elizabeth II is using popular video sharing site YouTube to deliver her annual Christmas video message this year, in a bid to widen the Royals appeal.

London, Dec 23 : Queen Elizabeth II is using popular video sharing site YouTube to deliver her annual Christmas video message this year, in a bid to 'widen the Royal's appeal.'

It has been revealed that the monarch would deliver her annual address online as part of the launch of a new YouTube channel for the Royal Family.

According to reports, the new initiative is a part of 'widening the Royal's appeal', and communicating to a younger generation of media users.

The Royal content, which is now available at www.youtube.com/theroyalchannel, will include archival footage, including the current Queen's first televised address in 1957.

The Christmas day address will mark the Queen's 50th official TV address, with the video to also be broadcast on television and radio across the world.

The 82-year-old monarch is said to be "very enthusiastic" about the new channel and has personally approved the release of archive and modern video footage featuring momentous and touching moments in royal history.

"The Queen has seen everything that is going on the new site. New footage will be regularly added to the channel from now on," the Telegraph quoted a royal source, as saying.

The opening page of the channel bears the title "The Royal Channel - The Official Channel of the British Monarchy" and features a photograph of Buckingham Palace and the Queen's Guards.

This year's festive address will appear on the site at about 1500 GMT on Christmas Day.

The Royal Family will make other archival footage available, including vision of the 1923 Wedding of the Queen Mother, and Queen Alexandra's West End tour among the rose-sellers in 1917.

A spokesman for YouTube said: " We are thrilled to see the British Royal Channel on the site, bringing some unique royal video footage to our global community."

ANI