Chance Encounters with Queen Elizabeth II
Memories of seeing the late sovereign—even for just a few seconds.
Welcome to So Many Thoughts, a semi-weekly newsletter about royal style and the other parts of life I want to think through with you. You can subscribe here and follow me on Instagram at @EHolmes. Thank you!
Shortly after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, I started hearing from members of the SMT community who had seen the Queen in person. As we close out the week of the late monarch’s funeral, I wanted to share a few of memories with you. You’ll notice a delightful surprise element to them. These are quick glimpses, to be sure, but I appreciated the little insights into what it was like to be in her presence.
And I remain deeply grateful for my own (quite deliberate!) quest to see the Queen earlier this year. The memory of dashing through the Trooping the Colour crowds down the Mall to get a view of the Buckingham Palace balcony is one I will never forget. Now I can forever say: “I saw the Queen!”
ICYMI: Mourning the Queen through newspapers / What it meant that Elizabeth was a queen / My interview on the Business of Fashion podcast
Seeing the Queen
Below are seven stories from the SMT community of chance encounters with Queen Elizabeth II. Thank you to everyone who shared with me, I found these (often fleeting) moments to be so moving!
Do you have a memory of seeing Queen Elizabeth II in person? Please hit “Join the Discussion” and share in the comments of this newsletter.
(All photos submitted by the subject, thank you! Some of these stories have been very lightly edited and/or condensed.)
“She was kind, witty, and gracious.”
Maggie, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
“I had the pleasure of meeting Queen Elizabeth II in 2019 at Buckingham Palace at a garden party. I obtained tickets through the High Commission of Canada. Me and my twin sister, Emma, were enjoying tea and cake and talking when a man approached us, identifying himself as a member of the Queen’s Guard. He was asking about how we were invited, etc., then asked us if we’d like to meet a member of the Royal Family.
At this point we had no idea who we would be meeting as the Queen doesn’t attend every royal garden party, so it might be somebody else. Then as we were standing in line to meet a member of the Royal Family, they played God Save the Queen and out walks the Queen. We ended up having a private conversation with the Queen for about four minutes. The Queen asked where we were from and the kind of work we did. She was kind, witty, and gracious. Her strong presence and smile will be dearly missed by so many. And I will treasure this memory forever.”
“It was amazing seeing her so close.”
Vicki, Salford, England
“Ten years ago, The Queen was coming to open MediaCityUK, new broadcasting studios near me. A friend asked me if I wanted to go. When we got there, she asked me if I was excited. I replied ‘We’re not going to meet her.’ Well, no one was there when we arrived so we stood next to the barrier. Turns out that the Queen walked past me so I spoke to her telling her it was a beautiful day! It was amazing seeing her so close.
When my son took his gap year, he was with a load of Americans, they thought all English people had met the Queen so I sent him the pic to show them and they lost the plot!”
From EH: The woman holding the camera in the top picture is Vicki!
“She touched so many people!”
Elizabeth, Dallas, Texas
“The last week has certainly been an emotional one for the world, and while I only met Queen Elizabeth for a brief moment when she was in Dallas in 1991, I was very moved by her passing. My late grandmother, Annette Strauss, was mayor of Dallas, and my sister and I got to present flowers to Queen Elizabeth during her trip to Texas. I was 8 and my sister, Kathryn, was 5. I had just learned to sew, so I sewed the Queen a pillow. (You can kind of see it in my right hand.) I couldn’t tell you now if I stuffed it with Kleenex or cotton balls, but it was one of the two—I had not yet started using real stuffing, I know that!—but she was so gracious. I will never forget it.
That summer, when we were staying with my grandparents, a letter arrived from Her Majesty’s Lady-in-Waiting saying that she was ‘commanded by the queen’ to write and ‘thank you for the pretty little cushion.’ I ran around the house SCREAMING and dancing; I was so excited. Of course we have all of this framed at our house in Dallas, and my dad always does his best Queen Elizabeth voice when telling the story of how she said, ‘how lovely,’ when I gave her the pillow. I know this was a very small thing in the grand scheme of her reign, but I suppose this is why she was beloved. She touched so many people!”
“It was unmistakably her!”
Maureen, New Jersey
“While my Queen Elizabeth moment was brief (I mean seconds long) I love the story and have told everyone I know about it. I was in London in May 2019 with my sister and best friend. It was my sister’s first time in the city and she wanted to see the changing of the guard. My friend and I told her was not that exciting (lol!) but that we would go to Buckingham Palace area so she could see some of the pageantry but not be pressed against the fences to see the happenings.
We cut across the Blue Bridge in St. James’s Park and came up to the Mall. We were getting ready to walk towards the National Portrait Gallery and were getting our directions out when a motorcycle came flying down the street. We immediately looked down the street where we saw police cars in a slow procession. Here came Lizzie! In the Bentley State Limousine, wearing a teal hat and coat, it truly was a moment where I understood why the Queen dressed all in one very bright color. We could see her clear as day and it was unmistakably her! I screamed like I was in the crowd for The Beatles Ed Sullivan debut. It was a pinch-me moment that I am so glad I was able to experience.”
“She was clearly in her happy place.”
Catherine, Sacramento, California
“I had the amazing opportunity of living in England with my husband and two boys from 2007 to 2013. Needless to say we fell in love with the country and it has forever changed us. While living there, I spent every free minute exploring and experiencing everything that I could. In May 2012 I went to the Royal Windsor Horse Show with some friends. I was convinced that somehow we would see the Queen, since I had heard that she usually went during the week and it was one of her favorite events.
Well, sure enough we were walking around, looked up to see a green Range Rover heading towards us. I looked closer to see it was the Queen driving!! No big fanfare, no obvious security, she just came to a stop and hopped out in her wellies and walked over to the horse arena with her trainers. We followed and watched her in the stands smiling and pointing to all the horses, having a wonderful time. She was clearly in her happy place.”
“I stood, transfixed.”
Christina, Napa, California
“On July 13, 1979, my high school best friend, Susie, and I were Eurailing around Europe after my exchange year in Sweden 1978 to 1979. My dad, a fervent Anglophile, gave me an assignment to visit Westminster Abbey as I set out on the jaunt. When Susie and I arrived in London, we decided to check the abbey off our list right away.
As 17-year-olds with more curiosity about bars and cafes than historical places, we erred and ended up at Westminster Cathedral (vs. Abbey), completely unaware we had made a mistake. But had we really made a mistake?
While standing in a pew moments after having walked through the giant doors of the place, looking around the cathedral and thinking to myself that it wasn’t as impressive and grand as my dad had made it out to be, there was a commotion behind me.
Suddenly, I was astounded to see Queen Elizabeth, clad in seafoam green from head to toe, and an entourage that included a cardinal and Prince Philip, walking up the aisle, within mere feet of me. I fumbled with the insta-matic camera I had in hand and tried to take a picture, but the shutter was uncocked. ‘Damn!’ I reflexively exclaimed, shattering the relative quiet and taking the queen aback.
She looked right at me with a surprised look on her face and in that moment I was able to cock the shutter and get the shot. The queen continued walking down the aisle after the incident, undeterred by the rude cursing of an errant American teenager in Levi’s and a sweatshirt. My mouth stayed open wide for many minutes after that as I stood, transfixed, in the pew watching the group advance toward the altar.”
“The Queen is the real girl power.”
Cinthia, Campinas, Brazil
“In June of 2019, we went to London on vacation with our children, and we show them museums and all the history of the country and Queen Elizabeth, my daughter on the way back noticed that in the Royal Guard had no women on the ‘Change of guard’ and decided to write a letter to the Queen with that suggestion, after all, according to my daughter’s words: the Queen is the real Girl Power.
As if by magic, she received a reply letter from the palace, from a lady in waiting from the Queen, my daughter Julia was so happy, she showed it to everyone at school, and with the Queen’s passing the first thing she remembered was the letter she received from the Queen, again she showed the letter to everyone and was sad that she didn’t have a Girl Power Queen anymore. The Queen sets an example of power and leadership for all little girls.”
EH note: The letter from Cinthia's daughter reads, in part: “We saw the changing of the guard, and I only saw guards boys. I would like suggest that could had girls guards, because girls have girls power like you the Queen.”
And the letter from the Queen’s Lady-in-Waiting reads, in part: “The ruling that women could not serve in the Infantry has recently been lifted, and women are now in training. It is hoped that women will be conducting Public Duties at Buckingham Palace within the next six months.”
Do you have a memory of meeting (or writing to) the Queen? Please hit “Join the discussion” and share in the comments of this email.
I want to make sure I am also holding space for important conversations around the past, present, and future of the monarchy. Here are some pieces and a podcast I am catching up on this weekend:
This is a Britain that has lost its Queen – and the luxury of denial about its past (Afua Hirsch, the Guardian)
I can't go on. I’ll go on. The Queen is Dead. (Suzanne Moore, Substack)
Monarchic, anarchic, Republican or unmoved? (Emily Maitlis, The News Agents podcast)
King Charles and the future of the monarchy (Matthew Engel, the Financial Times Weekend essay)
King Charles III: The epitome of inherited everything (Robin Givhan, Washington Post)
Take care, friends. I will see you back in your inboxes next week.
(Header photo by Ben Stansall - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The So Many Thoughts Newsletter comes out twice a week. You can subscribe and catch up on the archives here, including:
➡️ Royal Photography Through the Eyes of a Getty Images Curator
➡️ Thoughts on the New Cambridge Portrait from an Art Historian
➡️ Behind the Scenes of Jessica Yellin’s Interview with Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex
💭 Have Thoughts to share? I’d love to hear them! Hit “Join the Discussion” and leave a comment on my Bulletin page. You can also send me an email at Hello@SoManyThoughts.com. And you can find me on Instagram at @EHolmes.