Surprising truths about Queen Elizabeth II
Members of the royal family have always maintained a low profile in terms of their personal lives, but so many royalists, fanatics and the Queen's people want to know a little bit more about what Her Royal Highness likes, dislikes and how she goes about her day-to-day life. Unlike television, film and music celebrities, we do not know every last detail about the Queen but here are 15 little nuggets of knowledge you didn't know about Her Royal Highness.
The Queen and Prince Philip are cousins
It is quite customary for royals to marry within their own family — such as Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein who married Princess Margaretha of Luxembourg, and Constantine II of Greece who married Princess Anne Marie of Denmark. Queen Elizabeth II and her husband The Duke of Edinburgh are in fact third cousins, as they shared the same great, great grandmother; Queen Victoria.
A letter she wrote is on the moon
Queen Elizabeth wrote a congratulatory message to Apollo 11 astronauts when they first landed on the moon in 1969. The message was converted into micro-film and deposited on the moon in a metal container, and it is still there today.
She loves soap operas
The Queen is a fan of British soap operas and has even visited the set of several popular UK shows, including Coronation Street, EastEnders and Emmerdale. Who knows, perhaps one day Her Royal Highness will have a cameo role on one of her favourite soaps?
She has owned around 30 corgis
The Queen has always been associated with animals, but mostly the dog breed the corgi. She cares for her dogs herself, and even mixes their dinner with a silver knife and fork. She spoils them with cooked meats, biscuits and gravy at precisely 5pm every day. As well as corgis and dorgis, the Queen also breeds and trains labradors and cocker spaniels.
She loves her bath time routine
We're all creatures of habit, and the Queen isn't an exception. She bathes each evening in Elizabeth Arden rose fragrance soap and uses a large natural sea sponge, which is washed each week in lemon juice and salt water to keep it fresh. No shower gel for her then!
HRH is bilingual
The Queen can speak fluent French as well as her native English, and often uses the language for audiences and state visits — for example, during a speech on Canada Day in 2010. The Queen learnt to speak French from a young age through private tuition and French governesses — although she doesn't use her French tongue too often.
She has two birthdays
Something we all would wish for; two birthdays! The Queen's real birthday is on 21st April, but it is celebrated officially on a Saturday each year in June. Do you think this means she receives twice as many gifts? Perhaps another perk of being the Queen!
She's a fan of Christmas pud
Each Christmas time, the Queen dishes out Christmas puddings to her staff, which is a tradition made customary by King George V and King George VI. Over the years, the Queen's festive generosity has totted up to about 78,000 Christmas puddings. In addition, the Queen gives all her staff a gift to open on Christmas Day itself — how very generous!
The Queen can drive
Her Royal Highness learnt to drive in 1945, when she joined the Army. She has been known to cruise around in a Land Rover on Sandringham Estate, although she was once spotted driving her Jaguar away from a polo match in Windsor without wearing a seatbelt. The Queen is also the only person in the UK who is legitimate to drive without a licence and not display registration plates on her vehicles.
The Queen has a gold disc
The Queen is the first member of the Royal Family to be awarded a gold disc from the music recording industry. 100,000 copies of the CD of the Party at the Palace (a pop concert held over the Jubilee weekend to commemorate the Golden Jubilee), produced by EMI, were sold within the first week of its release.
She is a stage starlet
As a young girl, the Queen acted in a number of Pantomimes during World War Two including playing the part of the Prince in Cinderella in 1941. These pantomimes took place every year in the Waterloo Chamber at Windsor Castle. Who'd have thought?
The first British Monarch to visit China
The Queen visited China between 12th and 18th October 1986, making it the first State visit of a reigning monarch to the country. Her Royal Highness also visited Russia in October 1994, Brunei and Malaysia in 1998 and Korea in 1999 — which were all firsts for a reigning monarch.
She rarely rain checks on opening Parliament
As part of her royal duties, The Queen has opened Parliament every year except for 1959 and 1963, as she was expecting her sons Prince Andrew and Prince Edward respectively. If there was ever a good enough excuse to pull out of something, then this is it!
The Queen sat for the first and only hologram portrait
A regular sitter of portraits, the Queen sat for the first three-dimensional portrait in November 2003. The Queen chose the Yellow Drawing Room in Buckingham Palace, as it has gold furniture and soft, natural light — making it her favourite room for portraits. The artist Chris Levine created the masterpiece, which has since been turned into a postage stamp to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
The Queen has travelled on the tube
Since its first day of operation in 1863, the London Underground, or 'the tube', sees millions of people travel each day. But in May 1939, the then Princess Elizabeth journeyed on the tube with her governess Marion Crawford and Princess Margaret. Although, her mode of transport has changed somewhat since then, the Jubilee Line was named in honour of Queen Elizabeth's Silver Jubilee in 1977.
The Queen is the first monarch to have three divorced children
Divorce rates have indeed risen in Britain since the time in which the Queen married, but to see three of your four children divorce must be less than ideal for such an esteemed family. Charles, Prince of Wales, divorced Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1996; Prince Andrew, Duke of York, divorced Sarah Ferguson also in 1996; and Anne Princess Royal divorced Mark Phillips in 1992.
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