The Queen used a walking stick at her first public outing since mobility issues forced her to drop out of an engagement

• Queen Elizabeth used a walking stick at a public outing on Friday.
• Earlier this week, she missed the State Opening of Parliament due to mobility issues.

Queen Elizabeth was photographed using a walking stick as she arrived at The Royal Windsor Horse Show on Friday, her first public appearance in weeks.

The monarch was welcomed with cheers from the crowd as she made her way to her seat with her youngest son, Prince Edward, The Mirror reports.

It marked the Queen's first outing since Buckingham Palace announced she would be unable to perform her duties at the State Opening of Parliament due to "episodic mobility problems" on Tuesday.

"The Queen continues to experience episodic mobility problems, and in consultation with her doctors has reluctantly decided that she will not attend the State Opening of Parliament tomorrow," a spokesperson for the monarch said in a statement sent to Insider on Monday.

Her Majesty, who usually reads a speech at the beginning of each parliamentary session, was represented by her son Prince Charles.

Friday's appearance isn't the first time the Queen has used a walking aid in public. In October, she was photographed using a cane for the first time in over a decade at an engagement at Westminster Abbey in London. Then in February, she used her late husband Prince Philip's walking stick at an event to mark her Platinum Jubilee.

Later that month, she tested positive for COVID-19. During a virtual engagement in April, the Queen spoke to people who had previously contracted the virus. While she didn't comment on her personal experience, she did say it can leave "one very tired and exhausted."