What Is Queen Elizabeth Really Like Behind The Scenes?

Queen Elizabeth has been on the throne since 1952, per Royal UK, and she has become one of the world's most respected figures. Living in the public eye for a majority of her life means the queen has had to adapt to public scrutiny and present herself with the utmost confidence and poise at public engagements and within the royal family. 

Though the queen has been on hundreds of royal engagements, spoken in countless engagements, and been the face of England for nearly 70 years, very few people really know what she's like behind closed doors.

While her children — Prince Charles, Prince Andrew, Princess Anne, and Prince Edward — along with her grandchildren, Prince William and Prince Harry, are extremely close to her, she has never been one to wear her heart on her sleeve. However, a former Sovereign's Piper who worked alongside Elizabeth has revealed that she's very different from her public persona. Find out what he said about her real-life demeanor below.

Scott Methven, former Sovereign's Piper — aka the holder responsible for playing the queen's bagpipes — revealed to People in an interview that Queen Elizabeth is a very warm and approachable person. Methven worked for Elizabeth for four years from 2015-2019 and lived in residence with her wherever she went. Methven noted that Elizabeth would make jokes while he was on duty with her and was a "typical sort of granny" throughout their time together.

Queen Elizabeth also showed her compassion and empathy when Methven had to deal with the personal tragedy of his wife's cancer diagnosis and eventual death. "I just couldn't believe it," Methven said of his wife's diagnosis. "I went back to the castle and the queen's equerry said, 'How's Morven? Is everything OK?' And I just said 'No. She's going to die."

The queen then told Methven to take a leave of absence from his duties and told him that she and her family would take care of his kids while he was gone. She also declined requests from army officials to fire him after he couldn't readily perform his duties. "To have someone of that position do that ... she was just brilliant," he said.

Methven quit his job as Sovereign's Piper in 2019 after his wife died to take care of his kids. Elizabeth, though, still keeps tabs on Methven through text messages. "It's very endearing really," he added. "All the way through this the queen was absolutely fantastic."