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I wonder how many of us actually met the Queen, or at least saw her at some event?
In 1957, I was a Girl Guide at the World Camp held in Windsor Great Park to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of Scouts and Guides by Baden-Powell. There were lots of camps in the park, and each one had been set up by a group of Guides from different areas of the country - I was with the Wiltshire group, and also we hd a contingent from Birmingham with very strong Midland accents, which were contagious. The British guides arrived a week early as there was a bit to do, and the international Guides came for the second week and were distributed between the various camps.
When they'd settled in, we heard that the Queen was going to visit and would be touring two of the camps. Nobody was told in advance which ones, so we all made a big effort to have ours neat and tidy, and to practise our curtseys, in case she came to us. And we were chosen and she did!
We all had to pretend to be going on with our work as normal, which in my case was peeling potatoes. My friend was getting the pots and pans scoured ready to cook the meal, and had her hands full of saucepans, when we were told to line up to meet the Queen. She went down the line, chatting kindly to us all, but when my friend did her curtsy, she dropped all the pans with a horrible clang, narrowly missing H.M's feet.
She didn't blink an eye, or give any sign that she had heard or noticed, just carried on down the line, smiling and unruffled.
In 1957, I was a Girl Guide at the World Camp held in Windsor Great Park to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of Scouts and Guides by Baden-Powell. There were lots of camps in the park, and each one had been set up by a group of Guides from different areas of the country - I was with the Wiltshire group, and also we hd a contingent from Birmingham with very strong Midland accents, which were contagious. The British guides arrived a week early as there was a bit to do, and the international Guides came for the second week and were distributed between the various camps.
When they'd settled in, we heard that the Queen was going to visit and would be touring two of the camps. Nobody was told in advance which ones, so we all made a big effort to have ours neat and tidy, and to practise our curtseys, in case she came to us. And we were chosen and she did!
We all had to pretend to be going on with our work as normal, which in my case was peeling potatoes. My friend was getting the pots and pans scoured ready to cook the meal, and had her hands full of saucepans, when we were told to line up to meet the Queen. She went down the line, chatting kindly to us all, but when my friend did her curtsy, she dropped all the pans with a horrible clang, narrowly missing H.M's feet.
She didn't blink an eye, or give any sign that she had heard or noticed, just carried on down the line, smiling and unruffled.
