TEA WITH PADDINGTON BEAR
While the late monarch put duty at the centre of her life, the Queen wasn’t afraid to show her funny side on occasion – and in the final months of her life, appeared in a skit alongside Paddington Bear to mark her Platinum Jubilee
In the final months of her life, Her Majesty delighted audiences at the televised BBC’s Platinum Party at the Palace after kicking off the festivities with an appearance alongside the fictional character Paddington Bear – in which they both enjoyed a chaotic cream tea at ‘Buckingham Palace‘.
Paddington and the Queen were pictured sat opposite each other in ornate chair at a table, laid for afternoon tea, covered with a white linen cloth in an opulent room.
Accident-prone Paddington was shown causing mayhem by accidentally depriving the understanding sovereign of another cup of tea and spraying cream from a chocolate éclair over a Palace Footman.
The Queen’s secret sketch was the result of months of planning, and saw the duffle-coat wearing bear show the monarch how he ensured he always had his favourite treat on him just in case, lifting up his red hat to reveal his snack.
Her Majesty responded by revealing ‘So do I’ before opening her bag and declaring ‘I keep mine in here’ to show her very own ready-made supply of the bread and orange preserve staple.
The bear from deepest darkest Peru congratulated the Queen on her reign of 70 years, saying: ‘Happy Jubilee Ma’am. And thank you. For everything.’ The modest Queen replied: ‘That’s very kind.’
Filmed at Windsor Castle, the Queen spent around half a day filming the secretly-pre-recorded humorous two-and-a-half-minute sequence, according to The Telegraph, and the comic sketch was a surprise even to some of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren watching the scenes.
ELIZABETH 007
She was gamely ‘parachuted’ in the Olympic stadium for the opening ceremony at London 2012, after a meeting with James Bond at Buckingham Palace – with corgis in tow of course (pictured)
The Queen showed the world she was still full of surprises in 2012 when she agreed to take part in a comedy stint to open the London Olympics.
A clip played during the ceremony showed the Queen, then 86-years-old, being picked up at Buckingham Palace by Daniel Craig, playing James Bond, and then being ‘parachuted’ in the stadium for the opening ceremony.
The recorded sequence opened at Buckingham Palace, where a tuxedo-wearing Craig as 007 was presented to the Queen by her personal footman as she was writing a letter and training her corgis Monty, Willow and Holly to roll over.
After greeting the fictitious spy with an ‘Evening, Mr Bond,’ the Queen, wearing a glitzy pink dress, was escorted out of the Palace onto a helicopter by Craig.
At the time, Danny Boyle, who directed the short clip, said: ‘The Queen made herself more accessible than ever before.’
It was her first ever film role, and it was a comedy hit, proving the elderly Monarch had a great sense of humour.
To this day, the clip, which is available on Youtube, has been watched more than 51 million times across the globe.
QUEEN OF ONE-LINERS
During the 2021 G7 Summit in Cornwall, the Queen made everyone laugh when she asked World Leaders: ‘Are you supposed to be looking as if you’re enjoying yourselves?’
At the 2021 G7 Summit in Cornwall, the 95-year-old was dancing circles around World leaders, showcasing her wit and her good humour.
As she posed for pictures with the likes of Boris Johnson, US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the Monarch was heard saying: ‘Are you supposed to be looking as if you’re enjoying yourselves?’ which provoked laughter around her.
It was her first major public event together since the funeral of Prince Philip, the queen’s husband of more than seven decades, which made the joke even more poignant.
‘THIS IS MORE UNUSUAL’
During the G7 summit, the Queen cut a cake to mark her official birthday with a ceremonial sword
Also during the Cornwall G7, the Queen showed she had lost nothing of her panache when cutting a cake with a ceremonial sword with her daughter-in-law the Duchess of Cornwall and her grandson Prince William’s wife Kate Middleton.
She had been presented with a giant cake in Cornwall to celebrate her official birthday and was given the sword to cut it.
When a helpful aid told her ‘there is a knife if you want it,’ the Queen replied: ‘I know there is, but this is more unusual,’ leaving her audience in stitches.
