Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

We at Delia Online join the nation in offering our condolences to The Royal Family on the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Here, Delia shares her memory of meeting her...

"Of all the many words used in the last few days to describe Her Majesty - dutiful, caring,
inspirational, dignified, grandmotherly, respected (all of them entirely accurate and fully merited) -
one word seemed to me to stand out: fun.

In all the pomp and circumstance that surrounded the monarchy she carried herself  with
decorum and dignity, but in private and on more relaxed occasions she could be witty, grinning,
even mischievous.  Michael and I discovered this for ourselves when we were privileged to be
Invited to stay at Windsor Castle and have dinner with the Queen.  After a long meal during
which she kept us all amused with her stories, we rather assumed she would want to go to bed.

Not a bit of it.  She announced she would then take us on a tour of the castle and provided us
with a running commentary on the items in the Long Gallery - portraits of ancestors, Henry VIII’s
suit of armour and, not least, a series of bowls of water put down for the corgis.

We finished up in the Library, where we were directed to a particular desk on which were laid out
some ancient and some miniature cookery books, a letter from Queen Victoria in search of a cook
and a lectern on which sat a beautifully illustrated book of birds.  It was open at the page - on
canaries (which someone must have told her was the nickname of our football club).  Good fun,
but classy as well."

Photo by Victoria Jones