The Queen's Champion

Simon Stabler speaks to writer and actor Sanjeev Bhaskar, the star of The Kumars at No 42, Queen Elizabeth II's favourite television programme

- Simon Stabler

Despite being an immensely private person, albeit one who was known across the world, we were aware of many of the late Queen's like and dislikes. We knew what she kept in her handbag, her favourite drink and even her favourite TV show.

"It's come to light this year in the press that The Kumars at No 42 was her favourite show, which is kind of bizarre and strange and very nice, all at the same time," says Sanjeev Bhaskar, writer and star of the spoof chat show.

"She never said to me it's her favourite show. But I knew she watched it because of the conversations I had with her over the years.

"Actually, I first met her when the first show had just gone out and I was invited to a lunch at Buckingham Palace. She said: 'We watched the Kumars on Monday night. We knew you were coming so we watched it as a sort of trial! 'I hope I was found innocent, ma'am. She said: "The lady who plays the grandmother, she's not really that old, is she?' I said: 'No, she's not.

She's much younger. So, I knew she was a regular viewer. How regular I didn't know. How much she liked it I didn't know until this year."

Born in Ealing, west London, Sanjeev grew up in the flat above his parents' launderette in Heston, Middlesex. A self-confessed telly addict, he recalls running home from school to watch the likes of Thunderbirds, and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, followed in the evenings by American imports such as Lost in Space, Land of the Giants and Star Trek.

"The show I had the most love for as a child was The Saint because it was the one show that I remember my whole family sitting down to watch and we'd also watch The Avengers together. The Saint was really special to us and it got to the stage where my mum would refer to Roger Moore as 'Our Roger Moore. 'Our Roger's on telly!