Queen’s ‘unbelievable’ question with startled look was ‘true sign of her character’

Ailsa Anderson, who served the Queen for more than 12 years from 2001, says her diligence during her record-breaking 70-year reign was matched only by her humour and sense of fun behind closed doors.
The former government adviser started on a three-year secondment to the Royal Household but ended up staying more than a decade to become the Queen’s press secretary.
She admits: “I came into the Household with a slightly cocky demeanour and an air of superiority – I’d worked for three government ministers and I thought this would be a piece of cake.

“But as soon as I was beside Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh it grabbed me by the heart and I understood quickly that hers was like no job on earth – it was a true vocation.”
During her time as an integral part of the Queen’s senior staff, Ailsa took a key role in many high-profile events – including two jubilees, the death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and Prince George’s subsequent birth.

Queen’s ‘unbelievable’ question with startled look was ‘true sign of her character’