Queen Letizia Of Spain's Grandmother Menchu Álvarez Del Valle Dead At 93: Report
RIP. Queen Letizia of Spain's grandmother Menchu Álvarez del Valle has died at 93 years old, Semana magazine reported on Tuesday, July 27.
According to the outlet, Álvarez del Valle and the Queen had a "fantastic relationship, so the death has left her devastated."
Just a few months ago, Álvarez del Valle said: "There is nothing better than being a grandmother."
Álvarez del Valle was born in Santander in 1928 but lived in Oviedo since she was young. She became a Spanish radio journalist and worked for many radio stations, including Radio Asturias, Radio Oviedo (later REM), La Voz de Principado and Radio Nacional de España. She eventually retired at 62 years old.
Letizia followed in her grandmothers footsteps, as she worked for ABC and EFE. She later became a news anchor at CNN+ and Televisión Española.
Álvarez del Valle married Jose Luis Ortiz Velasco in 1949, and they had two daughters a son, Jesús José Ortiz Álvarez, who is the Queen's father.
Royal Central reported that Queen Letizia is currently in Madrid, Spain, while her husband, King Felipe VI, is in Peru to attend the swearing in of the country's president.
Queen Letizia has remained close to her family over the years, and Álvarez del Valle has been photographed at several family events, including Infanta Sofia's First Communion in 2017.
The Queen's daughters, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia, were said to be close with their great-grandmother.
Álvarez del Valle made her last public appearance in 2019 at the Princess of Asturias Awards, where Leonor gave her first speech.
Álvarez del Valle also was spotted getting the ACICCA Award in Avilés, where she spoke about her career.
"I would not have changed it for anything, like Asturias, because of many offers that were made to me from abroad," she said.
