The demise of the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday put an end to the era of the longest reigning Queen in the history of the British monarchy.
Buckingham Palace on Thursday announced that doctors had placed her late majesty under medical supervision before she was eventually pronounced dead.
As the world mourns the passing of the well-loved and respected Monarch, here are 10 facts about her
1. Queen Elizabeth II was born at 2.40am on 21 April 1926
To parents the Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother).
2. She’s been portrayed in roughly 100 films and TV shows
According to data from IMDb, the Queen has been portrayed by actors on screen an estimated 100 times, with notable portrayals including Claire Foy, who played her in Netflix’s The Crown and Helen Mirren, who won an Oscar for her role as Elizabeth II in The Queen
3. She drinks one glass of champagne every night before bed
According to the Queen’s cousin, Margaret Rhodes, the royal monarch takes a gin and Dubonnet before lunch and will drink a glass of wine with her meal, followed by a dry martini and a pre-bedtime flute of champagne.
4. She doesn’t have a passport
“As a British passport is issued in the name of Her Majesty, it is unnecessary for The Queen to possess one,” reads the royal family’s website, adding that all other members of the royal family, including The Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge, do have passports
5. She has two birthdays
The Queen was born on 21 April 1926, however, her “official” birthday is celebrated by the nation in June at the annual Trooping the Colour parade, which has been a traditional celebration since 1748.
6. She has seen 15 different UK Prime Ministers come into power
From Sir Winston Churchill to Liz Truss, Her Majesty has seen it all.
7. She is an Arsenal fan
The monarch was outed as a fan of the North London football team by none other than Jeremy Corbyn, himself an avid Gooner, during a speech in the House of Commons in 2016.
8. She speaks fluent French
The Queen is one of the most well-travelled British monarchs in history and has delivered a number of official speeches in French when visiting the country, showing off her prowess for languages.
9. She hosts more than 50,000 people at Buckingham Palace each year
Thanks to a thriving social calendar, the Queen is truly the hostess with the mostest, welcoming thousands of people into the Palace at various lunches, dinners, banquets and garden parties.
In pre-Covid times, she would have hosted more than 50,000 people at Buckingham Palace on an annual basis.
10. She was married for more than 70 years
In 2017, the Queen and the late Prince Philip celebrated 70 years of marriage, marking the couple’s platinum wedding anniversary.
They married at London’s Westminster Abbey on 20 November 1946 and reportedly celebrated the milestone with a private, low-key party at Windsor Castle.
At the time of the Duke of Edinburgh’s death in April 2021, the royal couple had been married for 73 years.