As our entire nation prepares for the heart-wrenching experience of witnessing the funeral – albeit televised – of our beloved late monarch, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, I felt it timely to disclose some little known facts about our beloved former Sovereign that I have gleaned over my many years as an official Royal Correspondent based in the London bureau of The Bug.

Her Majesty’s comic cameo appearance at the opening ceremony for the 2012 London Olympics with Daniel Craig playing James Bond, and more her double act with Paddington Bear during her Platinum Jubilee celebrations belie the fact that as a child Her Majesty harboured dreams of becoming an actor.

Of course that never eventuated once her uncle King Edward VIII abdicated and her father took over the throne as King George VI.

But it’s a little known fact that Her Majesty did manage to fulfill her dream in the later years of her reign when she appeared uncredited playing herself in the very first series of what would become the very popular BBC TV program The Crown.

Although the program’s credits show British actor Claire Foy in the lead role, it was her Majesty playing the part for most of the series which had its advantages such as not requiring much make-up. (below)

Only now can I reveal that Her Majesty stopped taking part in The Crown before production began on its second series.

Unfortunately for her,  she had been such a good actor that the series became a runaway success and Her Majesty thought it best to quite her role for fear of being exposed.

Not many people would be aware that Her Majesty was not a political conservative. In fact I was always pleasantly surprised to hear, via courtiers, her sometimes radical views on political events in the UK and around the world and on political leaders, most of whom she had met.

A case in point was former UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn whom Her Majesty adored, largely for his far-left policies. (below)

She was so supportive of him that she anonymously handed out how-to-vote cards for the UK Labour Party at the 2017 election.

All of her subjects in the UK and in the scattered realms around the globe such as Australia would be aware of Her Majesty’s love of the outdoors and would have seen many pictures of her riding her beloved horses or hiking in the Scottish highlands.

But it’s not as well known that she also enjoyed riding her personal royal e-scooter around London as well as more “high-adrenaline” sports such as bungee jumping (below), paintball, and in her earlier and more active years, parkour.

Aways one to support local community groups, the Queen herself was a longtime member of the Sandringham branch of the very British service group the Women’s Institute, which is a bit like our own Country Women’s Association.

She even appeared naked with other branch members in the Sandringham WI’s  annual fundraising calendar every year since she first proposed the idea in the late 1990s.(below)

It’s a little known fact that the branch’s first nude calendar inspired the 2003 film Calendar Girls starring Helen Mirren and Julie Walters.

It is all of these truly inspirational activities of Her Majesty that shall sustain me as I tune in to ABC TV and stand to attention for the entire live broadcast of her funeral tonight Australian time, and for the subsequent days, perhaps weeks, of post-funeral commentary.