
Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!
Thank you for signing up to Marie Claire. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Sometimes, all you need is for a dog to snuggle up to you and lick the tears from your face. When you've been dumped. When you're homesick. When your rebellious grandson and his wife defy your orders and upend the billion-dollar institution to which you've dedicated your entire life. On Friday, the Queen was photographed driving outside Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, and while it's the first time she's been seen in public since Meghan Markle and Prince Harry released that statement and all hell broke loose, I want to draw your attention to something more important: The dog in her backseat.
You see, the Queen, who famously owned and bred corgis her entire life, is no longer a corgi owner. In fact, it caused quite a stir in 2018 when her final corgi, Whisper, passed away: "8 Decades of British Royal Corgis Reportedly at an End," blared the New York Times. In 2015, the Queen had stopped taking on new corgis because she didn't want to leave any behind when she passed away. So when this coy corgi lookalike was spotted in her backseat, fans of both dogs and royalty (me) took notice. We (I) wondered: Could the stress of the past week have driven the Queen to renounce her no-corgis pledge?
Here's the Queen on Friday:
I took the liberty of zooming in.
Here's what else is interesting: The Queen is wearing a cream silk scarf with dogs on it. Could the Queen, who has been known to strategically communicate via brooches in the past, be sending a message through her styling choices?
Further deepening the mystery, the headscarf appears to be a print of...beagles. At this point, I broke from my investigation to try to find a similar scarf that I could buy, because investigating issues of international importance can be tiring and self-care is paramount. The one the Queen is wearing is by Hermès and is vintage and is called the MONARCH scarf, which is actually perfection. There are a few available on eBay if you're so inclined!
Anyway. Beagles.
You know which member of the royal family owns a beagle?
Guy the beagle, who Meghan rescued in 2015, in a now-deleted shot from her old Instagram.
Meghan's beagle is such a big deal, in fact, that Guy the Beagle even has his own book.
So, uh, yeah. I see what you did there, Liz.
But back to the dog in the backseat. I would understand if the Queen had panic-adopted a corgi to get her through the trying times ahead, a.k.a. the "days, not weeks" of four-way calls and people being "incandescent with rage." If I were the head of a historic institution that was being sapped of its very lifeblood, its two most popular members, and I had no dogs, well. I wouldn't make it!
However. It emerges that the Queen quietly holds on to two "dorgis," which are corgi mixes considered basically inferior but fine. Vulcan and Candy aren't often photographed, probably because of said inferiority complex, but they did make a cameo on the Queen's 2016 Vanity Fair cover. You can tell which ones are the dorgis because they look sad about not being considered "real" corgis.
A post shared by Vanity Fair (@vanityfair)
A photo posted by on
And following further investigation, I have determined an uncanny similarity between this dog, which is either Vulcan or Candy but, either way, is my forever mood:
And this dog, who still looks sad about being considered a second-class citizen five years later:
Plus, the Queen has also had several hunting dogs over the years, which are bred at Sandringham Estate. And since this was a hunting expedition, it's also possible that this very good boy is Turnip or Tom or whatever these very nice pups that don't appear on Vanity Fair covers are called.
This concludes my investigation. Thank you for joining me on this journey.
For more stories like this, including celebrity news, beauty and fashion advice, savvy political commentary, and fascinating features, sign up for the Marie Claire newsletter.
RELATED STORIES
Marie Claire Newsletter
Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

Jenny is the Director of Content Strategy at Marie Claire. Originally from London, she moved to New York in 2012 to attend the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and never left. Prior to Marie Claire, she spent five years at Bustle building out its news and politics coverage. She loves, in order: her dog, goldfish crackers, and arguing about why umbrellas are fundamentally useless. Her first novel, EVERYONE WHO CAN FORGIVE ME IS DEAD, will be published by Minotaur Books in 2024.
-
Taylor Swift Said These Three Words to Friend Blake Lively About Travis Kelce After Kansas City Chiefs Win Last Night
Swift, Lively, and a billion other celebrities were on hand to watch the Chiefs beat the New York Jets.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Issa Rae Had the Hottest Hair Color at Paris Fashion Week
She’s the latest star to turn red.
By Sophia Rivka Vilensky
-
These Tom Ford Perfumes Will Get You So Many Compliments
Heads will turn, guaranteed.
By Brooke Knappenberger
-
Sarah Hyland and Adam Devine Play 'How Well Do You Know Your Co-Star?'
The 'Modern Family' stars reunited for the 'Pitch Perfect' spinoff series.
By Brooke Knappenberger
-
The 78 Best Celebrity Couple Halloween Costumes of All Time
Honestly, we're impressed.
By Charlotte Chilton
-
Super Rare Photos of Queen Elizabeth as a Young Woman
From childhood snapshots to portraits as a young princess, beautiful and rare photos of the late Queen Elizabeth as a young woman.
By Mehera Bonner
-
King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla's Relationship: A Timeline
With the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Charles has ascended to the throne as king.
By The Editors
-
Who Is Next in Line for the British Throne, Explained
And yes—Harry and Archie are still in the line of succession.
By Andrea Park
-
Who Is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Fiancé Riley Roberts?
AOC's husband-to-be is an "easygoing redhead" who lives with her in D.C.
By Katherine J. Igoe
-
68 Times the Kardashians Posed Fully Nude and Owned It
And we mean fully nude—as in, not a shred of clothing.
By Bianca Rodriguez
-
Who Is Jonathan Owens, Simone Biles's Fiancé and NFL Player?
"The easiest yes!" Simone wrote about the couple's engagement.
By The Editors