R is for Royal Request

In light of yesterday’s post I thought I’d let you know how things turned out with my royal request.

Last night I called Buckingham Palace and spoke with The Queen.

Okay, I’m fibbing… I spoke with a sweet lady, in General Enquiries, who could easily have been The Queen - you never really know, do you - that accent can be tricky.

Here's how it all went down... 

I found this website called The official website of The British Monarchy and there was a Contact Us button. Really, I kid you not - it was that easy. 

Well, okay, maybe not that easy, I did have to press the Contact Us button.

Then, I found myself at a very interesting page: the Contact a member of the Royal Family page; first on the list was The Queen. Just like that!

Now, they do not accept emails; one must phone or write. 

So, late–really, really late–last night, I phoned. I hope I didn't sound tired - like right, I was way too excited... I was calling the Palace... who could possibly be tired. I'm tired now mind you.

I explained to the sweet lady, in General Enquiries–where they want to know what the general reason for your enquiry is–that I wished to obtain a photo of The Queen in casual attire as I wanted to draw a portrait of her. She, the sweet lady that sounded like The Queen, listened attentively and with confidence redirected my call. 

"Where?" you ask -  to another equally sweet lady (I think they have to pass a sweetness test to work at The Palace) in Royal Archives - not exactly the area I was looking for - but a start... or end to what could have been a sweet thing. 

I was informed that she, sweet lady number two, did not know who, at the Palace, would handle personal photos, as they were, after all, personal; she then, very sweetly, suggested I try CameraPress.com and RoyalImages.co.uk to see if they would have what I was looking for. 

Based on my quick perusal of their respective websites the photos are all of official engagements and not what I would like as a reference photo for my drawing.

She, still sweet and still number two, further suggested I could write The Queen a note and request the desired photo of her; so… I’m penning a note as we speak! 

Yes… I will write The Queen and ask if she, perchance, has a photo tossing about of herself sporting that elusive "I'm done with the crown for today" look that I might use as my reference photo.

I want to draw “a glimpse at the real woman beneath the crown jewels”. (I am borrowing said phrase from Linda Grimes, who left it in her comment yesterday - thanks, Linda)

Another Linda I wish to thank is not a blogger, but an off-blog personal friend. She called to enquire about another matter after which we discussed my “Q” post.

Sharing my frustrations with not being able to find more photos of Her Majesty in casual attire Linda piped up–like the woman in the know that she is–that I should google “Queen at Balmoral” - well… what can I say except, “Bingo.” 

Here's what I found following Linda's suggestion... 

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Doesn't The Queen have a beautiful smile - she genuinely seems to be enjoying herself in these candid shots. I have taken the liberty of cropping them as I would only be doing a head shot when I draw her.

Which is your favourite? 

What do you think, should I use one of these and just do it?  

Or wait… and see if another option presents itself?

Anyway… one can have a little fun, right! Life’s just too short not to go for it. 

I want to thank all of you for cheering me on with this project, and a special thanks to Martin, for the retweet - every little bit helps.

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Also, since we are on "R" I want to give a shout out to Ruth at Ruth's Yummy Stuff. (aka Ruth's Recipes)  If you haven't been by her place you really are missing some great recipes. 

I recommend taking a look at her Blog Archive where all the titles of her posts (and recipes) will be right at your fingertips. Tell her Jenny sent you!

I've been dabbling with wanting some wheat and gluten free dishes and Ruth has been busy helping me out. To which I say, "Thanks, Ruth - you rock!" 

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And to my fellow A-Zers - how're you all doing? Hang in we're on the home stretch! No quitting now... we've come too far! Right Al! Eh, Bushman... you good? (sure you are - you're rocking this gig) And Dani... stay strong!  

Cheers, Jenny

Re source information: all these photos were found by googling: “queen at balmoral”, “queen at sandringham”, “queen with her horses”, “queen with her dogs”. These photos have been copied and pasted so many times the original information is hard to find. My apologies to the original photographers - should you see your photos here, please advise and I will be happy to link them to you.  Jenny Pearson