Why One 109-Year-Old Woman Turned Down an Offer to Meet Queen Elizabeth in Favor of "Tea and Scones" With Prince William
"It was fabulous."
Queen Elizabeth II was a beloved monarch, but she wasn't necessarily everyone's favorite royal. A British politician has gone viral for discussing one particular 109-year-old woman who, when given the chance to meet the late Queen, asked if she could meet Prince William instead. Luckily, the Prince of Wales was reportedly only too happy to oblige the royal fan's request.
During an appearance on Times Radio, British politician Lord Ed Vaizey reflected on a sweet story involving the Royal Family. In a clip re-shared on Instagram, Vaizey revealed that he'd written to a woman named Catherine Masters when she turned 108 years old, and asked her "if there was anything special she wanted to do before she dies." She responded by saying she'd like to meet a member of the Royal Family.
After Vaizey said he could arrange for Queen Elizabeth to visit Masters, she reportedly responded by asking to meet Prince William instead.
One woman turned down a meeting with Queen Elizabeth II in favor of Prince William.
According to The Telegraph, Masters had actually written to the Royal Family prior to Prince William's visit, after receiving 5 identical birthday cards in as many years from the late Queen. In May 2009, Masters actually "received an apology in person from Prince William," per The Telegraph.
The last-minute visit was seemingly unexpected. "Neither [Masters] or staff at the Grange Care Centre in Stanford in the Vale in Oxfordshire thought much more of it until a telephone call came from St James's Palace," the outlet reported. "Only 5 minutes later a casually dressed Prince William, flanked by his protection officers, was...talking recipes for shepherd's pie with Mrs. Masters."
William and Masters had "tea, scones, and eclairs" during the meeting, and the prince "stayed for about 40 minutes talking to Catherine about her past and history," the assisted-living facility's manager told the newspaper. "It was fabulous."
"It was all secret."
"It was all secret," Vaizey shared during his appearance on Times Radio. However, he also revealed that Prince William's visit to the assisted-living facility wasn't a secret for very long, as the Prince of Wales posed for an adorable photo.
Masters, who was born in 1899 when Queen Victoria was on the throne, revealed what happened during the visit, telling The Telegraph, "I told him I would like The Queen to have a new dress because the one she wears has been the same [on every birthday card]. I think either a blue or white one would be nice. We talked about a lot of other things as well."
She continued, "He told me he liked making shepherd's pie and said he used a masher to mash the potatoes, but I told him he was doing it wrong—he should use a fork to fluff the potatoes."
