Queen Elizabeth II.Twitter
Queen Elizabeth spent a huge amount of time meeting people. After 70 years of service, how on earth did she remember their names?
Editor's note: Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest-serving monarch passed away on Sept 8, 2022, aged 96. Now, BHT takes a look back at some of the most popular stories which arose during her 70-year reign.
Could you remember the names and faces of up to 75 people that you need to meet in one day? Probably not, but Queen Elizabeth had a tactic that ensures she avoided any blunders.
As we know, twice a year the Queen met with members of the public who are in line to receive recognition for their service to the United Kingdom, in a variety of fields and industries.
These ceremonies were often long affairs, with Queen Elizabeth addressing each recipient individually, and saying a few words to them. Hard work for the Queen!
Queen Elizabeth II meets victims families and first responders of the attacks on September 11, 2001, during a visits Ground Zero at the World Trade Center site on July 6, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images)
What was the Queen's trick?
Julia Donaldson authored the well-known children's book The Gruffalo. In recognition of this, she was awarded a CBE and picked up on the very subtle trick that the Queen used to remember the names and achievements of everyone she meets.
She had this to say:
'I was told the Queen goes through the potted biographies with a yellow marker and just two words get highlighted. So when you get called up, the equerry shows her the words. I did my little curtsy and she said ''Oh, so you're a writer, you're very popular''... I went off thinking ''writer/popular.. those must have been my two words''.'
How clever by her majesty! This is certainly a useful way of ensuring that every guest the Queen greeted felt special.
* Originally published in Sept 2019. Updated in 2023.