When my finacee went, she said there were about two hundred people there, and so I suppose the Q was on a large dais or some such thing. This event took place at one of the large palaces–I don’t remember which and forgot to ask last night.
When my other friend went, there were about 15 people there from the local council, where the event took place (i.e., in some local hall–not the palace). To be honest, the thing I remember best about his dining experience is that he borrowed one of my ties for the occasion and still has not returned it.
I was at a youth hostel this summer in London, and someone CLAIMED to have had tea with the Queen that very afternoon. It seems their group was on a guided tour of the palace, when they were suddenly ushered past some ropes and through some metal detectors, then to another room where tea and biscuits were set up. Then in walked the Queen and invited everyone to join her at the table. She chatted with everyone and said she was pleased to meet so many people from all over world.
Credible? I have no idea. But it makes for a good story.
I have a vague recollection that Her Majesty visited president Clinton in Washington and she did the same show of visiting some private home of some poor people and had tea with them or something. I can’t find any information on line though.
Until recently, the Queen used to visit commoners in their homes on occasion and drink tea with them (or at least, tea was set before her, apparently she would never drink it). I remember one major photo opportunity in a council house in the roughest part of Glasgow. Presumably she’s not doing this any more, though, with all the extra security concerns.
Agreed. I really had thought her to be somewhat of a slacker until I saw a detailed documentary on her, which showed her putting in a very long day dealing with real government business nearly every single day. The way they portrayed her was quite impressive, and I don’t think they were just trying to sell her, as the documentary was also highly negatively critical on other areas (family relations, esp. Diana).
(For all the complaining that the Royals are “just a bunch of Germans”, the Queen looks very much like any other Englishwoman. She should - the English are a bunch of Germans themselves.)
um, no they’re not.
I, for example, am English celt - descended from the original inhabitants of these islands. Many celts fled to Wales and Scotland when the Romans came (bunch of cowards). We are the mad bastards who stayed, took to the hills and fought.
I dream of the day when we kick all the foreigners out - the vikings, the angles, the saxons, the normans. All of them. And then we can reclaim our homeland.
Formal occasions and the like apart, the only occasion I can recall it being reported in recent years that she’d had a “normal” night out at a restaurant was in 1997. For her Golden Wedding anniversary, she had dinner with her immediate family at the Waterside Inn in Bray.
Of course, this is one of the most acclaimed eating establishments in the country and the Royal party were the only ones dining there that night, so there was no chance of Mr. and Mrs. Bloggs from Milton Keynes evesdropping on her from the next table on her night off.
Yes, there were some people with guts down there too.
I’m from the north west of England where celts are more numerous than they are in the south and the east. Since the south and the east are nearer to the continent (and therefore more susceptable to foreign invasions) most of the vikings live there.
LOL good - I’m celtic-viking-saxon, and not a trace of Norman blood to be found (yes I’m also joking)
But seriously, my girlfriend can trace her ancestory with some certainty back to the Viking invasions. Which is VERY interesting.
I remember this as well. It was in a fairly rough neighborhood in (IIRC) D.C. The thing that I remember, which the press played as a minor scandal was that the rather large woman host gave the Queen a huge hug hello. Queenie was a bit taken aback but masked it well.
Ahh…but we are! The Celts aren’t the original inhabitants <i>either</i>, and more to the point they originate from South-East Germany. They took over Britain in two waves, the first around 600-400BC and the second around 150BC.
Pre-Edwardian vaudeville song “I Danced With A Man Who Danced With A Girl Who Danced With The Prince Of Wales” … can’t track down composer, but it was used as the theme for the mini-series “Edward & Mrs Simpson”.
Does the Queen still hold Garden Parties at her various palaces around the UK? If you go to one of them you get to eat sandwiches in the same general area that members of the Royal family are wandering around …
She sure does - I was invited to one this Summer, but the dates (I had a choice) were either four days before my wedding (when I’ll be too busy) or three days after my wedding (when I’ll be too abroad).
