By Royal Appointment Kiri's Majestic Honour

The grand dame has a rare date with the queen

- Judy Kean

One’s a monarch, the other is musical royalty. Dame Kiri Te Kanawa has had a long history with the Queen and her family, including famously singing at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer.

But the esteem in which she’s held by the royals was particularly evident last week when the opera star received special treatment, sitting alongside Her Majesty on a car ride to church.

Kiri (75) looked chummy with the monarch as the pair were driven from Sandringham to nearby St Mary Magdalene for the Sunday morning service. Both women were wrapped up warm against the chilly winter weather, with the Queen (93) in a furry hat with a blanket over her knees in the back of her Rolls-Royce.

Meanwhile, the Queen’s daughter Anne, Princess Royal, (69) walked from the royal residence to the church with her husband Sir Timothy Laurence (64) and another celebrity guest, racing driver Sir Jackie Stewart (80). It’s believed both Kiri and Jackie were staying at Sandringham for several days as guests of Her Majesty.

It’s the second year in a row that Kiri has been invited to spend time at the family’s Norfolk home, where the Queen and Prince Philip (98) reside over Christmas and into February. Exactly a year ago she also had the privilege of travelling to church in the royal Rolls-Royce.