NEAREST & DEAREST TELL The Queen we know & love

INSIDERS SHARE PRIVATE MOMENTS WITH THE MONARCH

- Judy Kean

She’s three decades past the age most people retire at, but her dedication to duty is as phenomenal as ever. And as the Queen prepares to celebrate her 95th birthday this month, praise is already flowing for her unstinting service of almost 70 years.

The Queen’s milestone birthday on April 21 has prompted a flood of tributes for the way she’s performed as monarch, and has also led many to reminisce about the woman behind the crown. One of those to speak out about what she’s really like is her childhood friend and bridesmaid, Lady Pamela Hicks.

Pamela, 91, who was also the Queen’s lady-in-waiting for a period, admits that as she watched her friend’s coronation back in 1953, she wondered how the 27-year-old would cope with the demands of the duty she’d have to undertake for the rest of her life. “I think one knew she would, because there’s such inner strength there.”

Like the Queen, Pamela is a great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Her father was Lord Mountbatten, and Prince Philip, 99, is her first cousin. Her recollections of growing up with Elizabeth feature in My Years with the Queen, a documentary made as part of Her Majesty’s birthday commemorations and based on diary entries Pamela penned while she was the Queen’s lady-in-waiting.

Pamela reveals that although the Queen has always put duty first and has strict rules about maintaining the dignity of the monarchy, in private she can be much more down-to-earth and playful. She’s known among her friends for her pranks and fondness for mimicry, and is “quite the giggler”, says Pamela.