Getty Images<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
It was only a week before the appointed day when the series director Simon Shaw announced the impending royal visit, and confirmed the three experts \u2013 Paul, Hilary Kay and John Axford \u2013 who would meet the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh. \u2018I will never know why I was picked, but I was very pleased,\u2019 Paul recalls.<\/p>\n
You might also like<\/strong> the best Royal memorabilia to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s long reign<\/a><\/p>\n
For Hilary, the summons was even more mysterious and overlaid by unexpected stress. She hadn\u2019t planned to join the Hillsborough Roadshow but was asked if she would be prepared to do so. \u2018When I asked \u201cWhy?\u201d I was told I couldn\u2019t be told. So I thought \u2013 blimey, this is pretty weird!\u2019 Having agreed to go and subsequently hearing the full story, Hilary arrived at Belfast airport, the day before the royal audience, only to discover a less welcome surprise. \u2018My luggage, with my carefully chosen royal meeting-and-greeting outfit wasn\u2019t there. I kicked up a huge fuss and the operative said, \u201cAnyone would think you\u2019re going to meet the Queen the way you\u2019re carrying on!\u201d\u2019<\/p>\n
$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Harrison Photography \/ Getty Images<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
On the morning of the royal meeting, the three experts briefly viewed the objects that had been selected for discussion, from items in the Royal Collection at Hillsborough. \u2018It had been agreed that the press and cameras would be there to film us talking about the objects for about 10 minutes, and then withdraw, so all the photos were taken then,\u2019 recalls Paul.<\/p>\n
Hilary vividly remembers the moment the Queen entered. \u2018It was a big room, but she filled it. When I shook her hand and curtseyed and looked into her eyes, I felt an extraordinary feeling \u2013 as if there was a plutonium power there \u2013 you wanted it to be like that and it was.\u2019<\/p>\n
You might also like<\/strong> behind the scenes of the Antiques Roadshow<\/a><\/p>\n
Having been introduced by Fiona Bruce, the experts\u2019 conversation began. Hilary had selected two objects that she hoped would have personal relevance. First, a silver<\/a> christening cup that was the gift of the Queen\u2019s aunt, Lady Granville, who had lived at Hillsborough, and second, an equestrian bronze of Caractacus, the Derby winner of 1862. The horse famously had several false starts before its win, Hilary explained. \u2018Sounds very incompetent,\u2019 remarked the Queen tartly. \u2018I don\u2019t know if I\u2019m making this up, but I honestly believe that she knew its sire and mother,\u2019 Hilary says.<\/p>\n
When Paul\u2019s turn came, he chose an Aboriginal club and told the couple it had been given to them during their first tour of the Commonwealth. \u2018The Duke asked me how I knew. I said, \u201cSir, it\u2019s on YouTube,\u201d and that caused huge mirth, especially from him!\u2019<\/p>\n
$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Harrison Photography \/ Getty Images<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nJohn Axford then stepped forward to talk about figures from the famous Meissen monkey band and a Chinese export tureen. \u2018The Queen had the most spectacular collection of ceramics<\/a>, but the Meissen figures were 19th-century versions, and the tureen was a slightly lumpy, fairly crude piece, as the Duke of Edinburgh pointed out. Still, it was a great privilege to be there and great fun. The Queen obviously loved the Roadshow; it was clearly something they watched \u2013 not surprisingly. If I were a monarch, I would want to see what my subjects were up to!\u2019<\/p>\n
You might also like<\/strong> where the Antiques Roadshow is filmed<\/a><\/p>\n
Paul recalls that when the signal was given and the cameras withdrew, shoulders relaxed and conversation flowed far more freely. \u2018It was informal, easy and very enjoyable. Time flew by. Then at a certain point the Queen looked at her watch and said, \u201cPhilip, we\u2019re going to be late for the helicopter,\u201d and off they went to visit the set of Game of Thrones. Watching the funeral, I remembered that day, and it made the whole thing more personal. I felt I had something genuine to grieve.\u2019<\/p><\/body><\/html>\n
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Janet Gleeson Published: Tuesday, 11 October 2022 at 12:00 am \u2018It was a huge surprise, shrouded by secrecy,\u2019 recalls Paul Atterbury of the first inkling he had that something out of the ordinary was about to happen. A strange phone call from the BBC Antiques Roadshow office had asked if he would be available […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":15885,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii.jpg",1600,1133,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii-300x212.jpg",300,212,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii-768x544.jpg",768,544,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii-1024x725.jpg",800,566,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii-1536x1088.jpg",1536,1088,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/10\/antiques-roadshow-experts-reflect-on-meeting-queen-elizabeth-ii.jpg",1600,1133,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Janet Gleeson Published: Tuesday, 11 October 2022 at 12:00 am \u2018It was a huge surprise, shrouded by secrecy,\u2019 recalls Paul Atterbury of the first inkling he had that something out of the ordinary was about to happen. A strange phone call from the BBC Antiques Roadshow office had asked if he would be available…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/15884"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}