First appearance of queen in touring empire (8)
I believe the answer is:
premiere
'first appearance' is the definition.
(eg first performance of a play)
'queen in touring empire' is the wordplay.
'queen' becomes 'ER' (abbreviation for Elizabeth Regina).
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'touring' is an anagram indicator (touring can mean moving around).
'empire' is an anagram of 'premie'.
'er' inserted inside 'premie' is 'PREMIERE'.
'of' is the link.
(Other definitions for premiere that I've seen before include "Mere pier (anag.)" , "First screening" , "Leading lady" , "Leading actress" , "Opening performance" .)