

When it was announced on June 6, 2021—two days after her birth—that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s daughter was named Lilibet Diana, members of the royal family apparently found it “bewildering” and “rather presumptuous.” (Lilibet is the very, very personal childhood nickname of Queen Elizabeth; Diana, of course, pays homage to Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana.)
But, in his new book Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait, longtime royal expert Gyles Brandreth says the Queen herself had a different reaction: Her late Majesty said the name was “very pretty and seems just right.”
Lilibet, though called “Lili,” is a tribute to the Queen’s familial nickname, “which only very few people outside her immediate family used for her throughout her life,” The Sun reports.
“According to the Sussexes, Harry sought his grandmother’s permission to use her family nickname as the Christian name for her eleventh great-grandchild,” Brandreth writes. “The Queen’s recollection was a little different. According to the Queen, Harry told her the Sussexes wanted to call the baby ‘Lilibet’ in her honor and she accepted their choice with good grace, taking it as the compliment it was intended to be.”
But others in the family didn’t react so well, especially since Lili’s birth came just three months after Harry and Meghan’s explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey (and about a year and a half after their step back as working members of the royal family in January 2020).
“Others in the family found the choice ‘bewildering’ and ‘rather presumptuous,’ given that Lilibet as a name had always been intimately and exclusively the Queen’s,” Brandreth writes.
The Queen was finally able to meet her namesake as she turned a year old during Her late Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations this past June.
Her reaction to Lili’s name wasn’t the only time the Queen’s response to Harry and Meghan’s decisions was softer than other members of her family. The book details Her late Majesty and her husband Prince Philip’s differing reactions to the aforementioned Oprah interview, with Philip thinking it was “madness” while the Queen was “relaxed, dismissing it.”
Brandreth adds that the Queen was “devoted” to Harry and “she truly wished him well in his new life abroad.”
What a woman, indeed.
Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait hits shelves December 8.
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.
-
The Unexpected Character in Season Six of ‘The Crown’? Princess Diana’s Swimsuits
"The swimsuit is the new ball gown.”
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Spain’s Queen Letizia Masters the Wintery White Pantsuit for Royal Engagement Celebrating Her Former Career
Before she was a member of the Spanish royal family, Letizia was an accomplished journalist.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Priyanka Chopra Jonas Made Us Do a Double Take in A Pink and Black Bodycon Dress
Chopra Jonas—along with a slew of other celebrities—were on hand for the F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Nearly Four Years After Leaving the U.K., Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Are “Embarking On a Total System Reboot”
“They are all about the future.”
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Once the Peacemaker Between Prince William and Prince Harry, Princess Kate Now Considers Her Relationship With Harry Over
It’s one of many bombshells Omid Scobie is dropping this week in his new book.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Even Though the Sussexes Knew They Weren’t On the Same Page with Spotify, They Still Signed $20M Deal Because They “Needed Serious Money,” Author Claims
“The money was on the table, and they were in a desperate place.”
By Rachel Burchfield
-
The Princess of Wales and Meghan Markle Haven’t Spoken Since 2019, New Book Claims—and Yes, That Includes at Joint Appearances
The “silence was palpable” as Kate and Meghan rode in a car together to Windsor Castle for a walkabout after Queen Elizabeth’s death.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Distraught Over Being Asked to Vacate Frogmore Cottage Earlier This Year, Prince Harry Asked His Father King Charles a Heartbreaking Question
The Frogmore eviction has long been seen as a retaliatory move for the publication of Harry’s memoir, ‘Spare,’ just weeks earlier.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Now We Know Why Meghan Markle Didn’t Attend King Charles’ Coronation Last May
In his new book, ‘Endgame,’ Omid Scobie explains that Meghan has no intention of returning to England anytime soon—or possibly ever.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
Meghan Markle Almost Wore a Tiara That Would Have Poignantly Honored Princess Diana
Instead, Queen Elizabeth insisted that Meghan choose from her personal collection.
By Rachel Burchfield
-
The Royal Family is Growing “Increasingly Frustrated” That King Charles “Won’t Just Fix Things” With Prince Harry
They want the King to mend fences “for the sake of everyone.”
By Rachel Burchfield