

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.
From age 10 on, the then Princess Elizabeth really didn’t have a say in what career she’d undertake as she grew into adulthood. Though she wasn’t born in the direct line of succession, when her uncle King Edward VIII abdicated the throne in 1936 to marry American divorcée Wallis Simpson—thereby making her father King—it became clear that serving the Crown would be her life’s work. In 1952, at just 25 years old, she became queen after her father died unexpectedly; she would reign for 70 more years before her death last September 8 at 96 years old.
But if she had a choice, Her late Majesty’s friend and royal author Gyles Brandreth said she would have chosen an entirely different career path for herself. If she had never been monarch, Brandreth said the late Queen would have been a comic impressionist—admittedly, not the career path we were expecting.
Per The Daily Express, Brandreth explained how Princess Elizabeth had been inspired by an entertainer who visited Windsor Castle during World War II. She had also taken a particular interest in George Formby, an actor, singer-songwriter, and comedian whose song “When I’m Cleaning Windows” Elizabeth would often sing, mimicking him.
“There was a woman who came called Florence Desmond,” Brandreth told Times Radio. “She did impressions—Marlene Dietrich, Mae West, and Vera Lynn. The Queen told me that if she hadn’t been Queen, she might quite have liked to have been an impressionist. I said, ‘Really? What can you do?’ And she said, ‘I can do George Formby.’ And there and then, the Queen picked up an imaginary ukelele and she sang to me ‘When I’m Cleaning Windows.’”
Brandreth said that Her late Majesty could also mimic animals and regional accents. “She’d do Frankie Dettori jumping off a horse, Concorde over Windsor Castle,” he said. “All in one conversation. It was a heck of a conversation.”
One has to wonder if the late Queen bonded with former actress Meghan Markle over this; Brandreth said of Her late Majesty that she told Markle she could “carry on being an actress” at their first meeting, and that she was “concerned” for her happiness.
By the way, even if her uncle hadn’t abdicated, she would have likely still become Queen, as Edward never had any children, meaning the line of succession would have eventually passed to Elizabeth, someone truly meant to reign.
Marie Claire Newsletter
Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.
-
‘Love Is Blind’ Fans Want to Know—How Are Johnie and Chris Faring Now?
Everything we know.
By Quinci LeGardye
-
Refill That Empty Makeup Bag with Ulta's Fall Haul Event
Up to 40 percent off your favorites, this weekend only.
By Gabrielle Ulubay
-
Sen. Dianne Feinstein Dies at 90
The liberal icon was the longest-serving woman in the Senate, known for championing gun control as well as protecting the environment and reproductive rights.
By Tanya Benedicto Klich
-
Like So Many of Us, Queen Elizabeth Adored This Fragrance
She called the scent “the very thing I particularly wanted.”
By Rachel Burchfield
-
As Per Usual, Princess Catherine’s Outfit Yesterday Was Loaded with Symbolism
The earrings, the outfit color choice—it all has meaning.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Sarah Ferguson Pays Tribute to the Late Queen With New Photo of Her Corgis Muick and Sandy
They're. So. Cute.
By Iris Goldsztajn
-
Only After Breast Cancer Diagnosis Did Sarah Ferguson Stop Comparing Herself to Late Sister-in-Law Princess Diana
“I didn’t like myself and that was because, I think, I was always compared to Diana.”
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Queen Elizabeth Was Understandably Confused by the “Vodka Luge” at Prince William’s 21st Birthday Party
The elephant-shaped ice sculpture (you can’t make this up) was the centerpiece of the event.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
There Was One Part of Modern Royal Engagements That Queen Elizabeth Couldn’t Stand—and Princess Anne Has Thoughts on It, Too
We can’t say we blame either of them.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
King Charles is Reportedly “More Decisive” About Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Future Than Her late Majesty Was
The late Queen always hoped “that the couple would return to the fold one day.”
By Rachel Burchfield
-
An Interesting Coincidence: When Queen Elizabeth Wore Blue to a Family Wedding, the Couple Got Divorced
The so-called “blue curse” hit Her late Majesty’s sister and her three oldest children.
By Rachel Burchfield