Queen's disappointment as her horse loses at Ascot and she misses races third day running

Royal fans were left disappointed after hopes soared that the Queen had made a late dash to Royal Ascot.

The monarch was again missing from the meeting - but many were sure she was was about to surprise the huge crowd with a sudden and unexpected appearance.

The Queen's Royal Standard, which represents the Sovereign and the United Kingdom, was flown just after 4pm at the Berkshire racecourse.

It only goes up when Her Majesty is in residence, on her car or on official journeys.

Videos circulated on social media with the Standard on display at the Royal Enclosure - and many expecting to see her on the balcony.

Hopes were rising that the Queen would be at Royal Ascot (Getty Images)

But Royal Ascot told The Mirror: "We can confirm that the flag is the Princess Royal’s Standard, not Her Majesty’s."

She was instead watched her horses from home, cheering them in from Windsor Castle.

Her horse, Reach For the Moon, was odds-on to win but just fell short and couldn't give the Queen her 25th Royal Ascot winner.

Her hopes of seeing her horse triumph were scuppered as Claymore won the Hampton Court Stakes.

Reach For the Moon couldn't quite get the win she really wanted (Getty Images)

Princess Anne and Zara Tindall stepped in on a sweltering day.

Zara, 43, was all smiles in her cream Laura Green coat dress, green and pink Justine Bradley-Hill hat and Karen Millen fuscia shoes as she protected her eyes from the glare with a chic pair of sunglasses.

Top hats were the order of the day for TV presenters Nick Knowles, 59, who arrived with his girlfriend Katie Dadzie, and Jeremy Kyle, 56, pictured with his wife Victoria.

TV’s Kirsty Gallacher, 46, looked stunning all in black and Real Housewives of Cheshire star Ampika Pickston, 40, brought gasps with a huge cascading green hat.

Princess Anne, Zara Tindall and Mike Tindall were all on royal duty (Getty Images)

Colourful feathers adorned other eye-catching headwear as the ladies put the men in the shade with some dazzling outfits on the third day of the meeting.

The 13-8 favourite Kyprios, ridden by Ryan Moore won the big race of the day, the Gold Cup, with Stradivarius, who was bidding to become a four time winner in the event, finishing third with Frankie Dettori on board.

Dettori finished second on the Queen’s horse, Reach for the Moon.

The five-day event in Berkshire is expected to attract a total of 270,000 racegoers and tomorrow the temperature is forecast to reach a sweltering 31C.

It is said to be unlikely that the Queen will attend on Friday.