A sad day and the end of an era. Elizabeth II has been a constant presence throughout my entire life, and her absence will be keenly felt.
One of the things I admire about the Royal Family is how accessible they are. I never spoke to the Queen, but I was 'in her presence' twice at Buckingham Palace, and I got to say hello to Prince (now King) Charles when he came to visit Sheffield.
My wife has had rather more royal encounters, and has met the Queen, Princess Anne and spent a whole hour with Prince Charles showing him around her place of work.
One of her proudest moments was being made Commander of the British Empire at Buckingham Palace. She said that although the Queen had lots of people to see that day, she seemed genuinely interested in her and her work. The ceremony was a fabulous experience, and has the happy side effect that our kids can get married in St Paul's cathedral if they wish(!).
Rest peace Your Majesty, and best wishes and good luck to King Charles III. May you have a long and happy reign.
A nice post and what a wonderful experience for your wife (and, potentially, your children!) I was interested to note that 31% of the British public claim they either met or at least saw the Queen in person during her lifetime.
ReplyDeleteWell, the Queen did get around a fair bit and was very visible at public events, so yes, I'd expect a fair number of people got to see her. In the distance at any rate. In contrast, the only Prime Minister I've seen in the flesh is Thatcher (twice).
DeleteWell said
ReplyDeleteThanks Mark.
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