True story behind Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret sneaking out of the palace on VE Day
She said it was one of the "most memorable" nights of her lifeQueen Elizabeth II sat on the throne for 70 years, but before giving an oath to lead the country she and sister Princess Margaret once snuck out of Buckingham Palace one night to celebrate VE Day.
The royal siblings managed to break cover from the walls of the palace grounds for one special evening.
As the anniversary of VE Day approaches, we take a look back at Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret’s incredible night out.
Did Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret have a night out?
Yes! The late Queen Elizabeth II herself admitted she and Princess Margaret enjoyed a night out on VE Day in 1945.
The pair, along with 16 other members of the entourage, wanted to join the festivities of celebrating the end of the Second World War.
Her father, King George VI even wrote about it in his diary, referring to his two daughters as “poor darlings” who “never had any fun yet”.
In 1985, the monarch sat down with a special interview with Godfrey Talbot, and she looked back on the day four decades later.
She remembered the “lines of unknown people linking arms and walking down Whitehall, all of us just swept along on a tide of happiness and relief”.
‘Raised eyebrows’ at the Ritz
Queen Elizabeth said sneaking out the palace for a night out with Princess Margaret was “one of the most memorable nights of my life”
The royal’s cousin, Margaret Rhodes, later told Channel 4 it was a “wonderful escape” for the sisters. She said: “It was just freedom – to be an ordinary person.” She added they event went into the Ritz and did the conga!
Rhodes continued: “I remember old ladies looking faintly shocked. As one congaed through, eyebrows were raised.”
They were spotted on their night out though, as a friend of the future Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret’s bodyguard, recognised the sisters. However, she said they “were people like anyone else – we didn’t take any notice of them”.
The former monarch remembered: “After crossing Green Park we stood outside and shouted, ‘We want the King” and were successful in seeing my parents on the balcony, having cheated slightly because we sent a message into the house to say we were waiting outside.
“I think it was one of the most memorable nights of my life.”
Is any part of A Royal Night Out true?
In 2015, a film of the night was released, called A Royal Night Out. But is it true? Yes, the sisters did leave the palace to enjoy the celebrations – including wearing disguises.
Queen Elizabeth wore her Auxiliary Transport Service uniform as she served as a driver and mechanic with ATS during the conflict.
She said to the BBC: “…When the excitement of the floodlights being switched on got through to us, my sister and I realised that we couldn’t see what the crowds were enjoying so we asked my parents if we could go out and see for ourselves.”
The princesses went out at around 10pm, mingled with revellers on the streets and returned at 1am.
Some conversations and small scenes from A Royal Night Out are likely added for effect, but the story did happen.
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