The Queen was in high spirits as she paid a visit to the set of Coronation Street last week. The monarch met with some of the cast and crew from the show – and her unlikely appearance went on to spark reports that she is a fan of the ITV soap.
But it seems it is not the royal who’s an avid viewer – but rather her personal dresser and close friend Angela Kelly, who accompanied the Queen on her visit.
ITV’s chairman Sir Peter Bazalgette has since told the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden: “We think [the Queen] watches occasionally, only because with her was her dresser, who is Coronation Street‘s number one fan.”
He added: “She [the Queen] was very interested in the cobbles and was given a cobblestone from the old site engraved with her name. There are 1,514 doors in Buckingham Palace, so John Winston, the uber boss of Coronation Street, said she can use it as a doorstop.”
Angela has a very unique relationship with the Queen having worked as her Personal Advisor and Senior Dresser for more than two decades. She is an essential part of the monarch’s inner circle and the pair have developed a friendship over the years.
While she still calls the Queen “Your Majesty”, she is one of the very few non-family members allowed to touch her.
“I love the Queen and everything about her,” Angela once told The Telegraph. “She has allowed me to become closer to her over the years. I would never overstep the mark and I remain in awe of the Queen.”
She further maintained that the two have a surprisingly normal relationship. “We are two typical women. We discuss clothes, make-up, jewellery. We say, ‘Would this piece of jewellery look nice with that outfit?'”
The 53-year-old famously has written two books about the monarch – with Her Majesty’s permission – and revealed she breaks in the Queen’s shoes for her.
“As has been reported a lot in the press, a flunky wears Her Majesty’s shoes to ensure that they are comfortable and that she is always good to go,” she wrote in the book. And yes, I am that flunky.”
