09:04 AM EDT 08/08/2008

Add PEOPLE News

Queen Elizabeth II

Credit: Carlos Diaz/INF; INF
The Queen's Helen Mirren Meets the Real Queen

Helen Mirren

The Queen's Helen Mirren Meets the Real Queen

Originally posted 06/20/2008 11:30AM

Helen Mirren, who won an Oscar for playing Queen Elizabeth II in 2006's The Queen, came face-to-face with the real Queen yesterday at the Royal Ascot race meeting near Windsor, England, PEOPLE has confirmed.

The British star, 62, had turned down an invitation to Buckingham Palace last year in the aftermath of her Oscar triumph. But all was forgiven as she had tea with Queen Elizabeth II in the royal box at the Royal Ascot race meeting on Thursday. The pair spent nearly an hour chatting and enjoying English traditional cucumber sandwiches and cakes with their tea.

Just hours earlier, Mirren presented a race trophy and then explained to PEOPLE why she declined last year's invitation, which conflicted with her shooting schedule on National Treasure 2. "I spoke to Buckingham Palace after I was invited and told them that I was filming in South Dakota and couldn't be in two places at once," said Mirren. "There was no snub and I would love to meet the Queen. It would be a great honor."

A couple of hours later, her wish came true.

The actress had met the Queen once before, but not since portraying her in The Queen.

Credit: Alpha/Landov
Princess Eugenie Emerges After Nude Controversy

Princess Eugenie Emerges After Nude Controversy

Originally posted 06/17/2008 09:55AM

Fresh from tales of her nude romp at school, Princess Eugenie landed in the more formal setting – and attire – alongside her grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, on Tuesday.

Fergie's 18-year-old royal daughter and her older sister, Princess Beatrice, 19, made their first appearance at the glamorous Royal Ascot horseracing event, where they rode in an open-topped carriage with Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.

Their carriage was just one behind the Queen and their father, the Duke of York.

Read More

Credit: Otto/Landov; INF
Diddy to the Queen: Let's Do Lunch

Diddy to the Queen: Let's Do Lunch

Originally posted 06/10/2008 02:00PM

He may be king of the party scene, but Diddy longs to kick it with some real royalty.

"There is one person I really want to meet: the Queen of England," he told the U.K.'s Telegraph newspaper on Tuesday. "I don't know why I've never met her. She's never invited me to the palace – not yet, anyway."

While he waits (in vain?) for that invitation, Diddy said his tastes have already grown more refined. "I put out a statement that I have given up champagne and tequila," he told the paper. "Champagne doesn't agree with my palate any more, you see."

These days, he insists, "I wouldn't even say that I'm a big drinker."

Advertisement
Credit: INF
Queen Elizabeth II Becomes Britain's Oldest-Ever Monarch | Queen Elizabeth II

Tributes

Queen Elizabeth II Becomes Britain's Oldest-Ever Monarch

Originally posted 12/20/2007 12:30PM

At 81 years and 243 days old, Queen Elizabeth II becomes the Britain's oldest-ever monarch Thursday, passing Queen Victoria.

Buckingham Palace has calculated her age down to the hour and says Elizabeth will officially set the new record at around 5 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time, or noon EST, the Associated Press reports.

Read More

Credit: Carla Van Wagoner/WireImage; Chris Jackson/Getty
Queen Elizabeth Snaps at Annie Leibovitz in New Doc

Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth Snaps at Annie Leibovitz in New Doc

Originally posted 07/12/2007 09:20AM

Queen Elizabeth II was not amused when celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz suggested she remove her crown for a portrait, a clip from a new BBC documentary reveals.

Read More

Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty; Ethan Miller/Getty Images
The Queen, K-Fed & Birkhead Head to Kentucky Derby | Kevin Federline, Queen Elizabeth II

Kevin Federline

The Queen, K-Fed & Birkhead Head to Kentucky Derby

Originally posted 05/04/2007 04:45PM

The horsey set's annual rite of spring, the Kentucky Derby, is bringing to Louisville as diverse a crowd as ever has been seen in the event's 133-year history.

Read More

WEEK IN REVIEW: Wills's Unfunny Guest

Originally posted 06/27/2003 01:00AM

PARTY CRASHER: Britain's Queen Elizabeth and her family received an apology from Scotland Yard after a comic crasher interrupted Prince William's 21st birthday party, Reuters reported. "The Commissioner has tendered apologies to the Royal Family for the appalling breach of security at Windsor Castle on Saturday evening," the Yard's Assistant Commissioner, David Veness, said in a statement. Aaron Barschak, 36, an aspiring professional entertainer who calls himself a "comedy terrorist," bypassed security at the weekend event by climbing a wall and then fooling a police officer inside.

Read More

Queen Invites Camilla to Anniversary

Originally posted 05/28/2003 01:00PM

In the strongest sign yet that she's being embraced by the elder faction of the Royal Family, Queen Elizabeth has invited Camilla Parker Bowles to the 50th anniversary of Her Majesty's coronation, considered the major royal event of the year, reports British news outlets.

Read More

Prince Charles Steps In to Seek Answers

Originally posted 11/13/2002 11:00AM

Prince Charles announced Tuesday that he has ordered an internal investigation into the two scandals swirling around the royal family.

Read More

Advertisement

Colin Firth Gets His Royal Fill of Polo

Originally posted 07/29/2002 01:00PM

The "Bridget Jones's Diary" hunk and one of PEOPLE's 50 Most Beautiful People of 2001 joins Queen Elizabeth at England's Guards Polo Club.

Read More