Sophie’s agony as a police officer with a motorcycle escort collides with OAP

An elderly woman has been taken to hospital in critical condition after being hit by a police motorcycle escorting Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, in west London.

At about 3.21pm today, the motorcycle collided with the woman at the intersection of Cromwell Road and Warwick Road in Earl’s Court.

Paramedics from the London Ambulance Service and London’s Air Ambulance rushed to the scene and a woman in her 80s has been taken to hospital.

She is in critical condition there. Her family has been notified.

Buckingham Palace says the Duchess of Edinburgh’s “thoughts and prayers are with the injured lady and her family,” adding she was grateful for the “prompt response” of emergency services. There are no reports of other injuries.

Buckingham Palace says Duchess of Edinburgh ‘thoughts and prayers are with injured lady and her family’

There are road closures in West Cromwell Road near Earl’s Court in West London

A police bicycle from the SEG (Special Escort Group) can be seen in a police cordon

The crash took place at the A4 Cromwell Road junction with Nevern Road in Earl’s Court, West London

Photos taken at the scene show a Special Escort Group police motorcycle – often used to escort royals and high-ranking government officials – in a police cordon surrounded by medical equipment.

There is a brown paper bag on the road surface, along with a face mask and what appears to be a bottle of hand sanitizer.

Elsewhere, to the left of the police motorcycle is a lone shoe – a sports shoe – with a marker next to it.

It is not known whether this trainer belongs to the victim.

The Met police investigation into the circumstances leading up to the collision is ongoing.

The road closures will remain in place while the crime scene is handled.

A spokesperson for Met confirmed that the police’s Directorate of Professional Standards has been notified of the incident, as is customary.

The Duchess of Edinburgh, 58, attended the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Saturday with her husband Edward.

The pair appeared yesterday with the Prince and Princess of Wales to host Buckingham Palace’s garden party.

They’re often regarded as two of the monarchy’s most popular members – and it looks like Sophie, 58, and Kate, 41, will become the power duo of Charles’ new look firm

The Princess of Wales, 41, teamed up with the Duchess of Edinburgh, 58, along with their husbands, to host Buckingham Palace’s garden party yesterday

It’s far from the first time the two groups of royals have teamed up. In 2020, Sophie celebrated her 55th birthday with Kate when she and Prince William hosted the UK-Africa investment summit at Buckingham Palace.

It also emerged that the duo, along with Camilla, had been calling people who were elderly, self-isolating or frail to check in with them during the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Peoplethe trio took part in the NHS Volunteer Responders programme, which was coordinated by the Royal Voluntary Service (RVS), and saw participants ‘check in and chat’ with people.

It’s far from the duo’s first time working together – publicly supporting each other following the Queen’s death last September

Sophie and Kate have long appeared together at royal events (pictured, at Eugenie’s wedding in n2018)

In recent months, the couple has been at the forefront of the downsized monarchy, with Sophie standing next to Kate at her second annual Christmas carol service last December (left) and the families arriving together for the Easter service (right)

The duo also made a public appearance together last year when they attended the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham

In a poignant move, Charles placed Sophie and Kate side by side in his coronation portrait, shared earlier this week

Monday saw the sovereign unveil his new ‘slimmed’ monarchy, with his ‘hard-working and respected’ sister Princess Anne and loving wife Queen Camilla firmly by his side.

Meanwhile, royal expert Richard Fitzwilliam told MailOnline that King Charles probably chose very carefully how his coronation portraits were staged.

Mr Fitzwilliams said: ‘This is a strong powerful portrait of a monarch who knows his own mind and is very experienced.’

Mr Fitzwilliams noted that there were only four people under the age of 70 in the family photo and said this will be a ‘challenge’ for the king in the future, who will have to decide ‘how slimmed down he wants the monarchy to be’.

• Did you witness the crash? Send an email to stewart.carr@mailonline.co.uk