'Are You OK?': Camilla's Kids Were 'Terrified' During Surprise Encounter With Late Queen Elizabeth
Tom Parker-Bowles, 49, and his sister, Laura Lopes, 46, once met the late Queen Elizabeth II in 2005, but the impromptu meeting actually "terrified" Queen Camilla's 77, grown kids!
The food author told an outlet that he met the monarch when he was eight years old to which he "was so scared that I curtsied rather than bowed. Parker-Bowles ran into the sovereign again in April 2005 alongside his sister, which left them both "awestruck."
The scribe shared how he and his sibling "got lost" outside the massive Windsor Castle grounds before they "suddenly heard this voice saying, 'Are you okay?'" The Queen appeared as if almost by magic.
He added, "Obviously she was magnetic and lovely and she was The Queen, the most famous person in the world. We just followed like two rather terrified but awestruck puppies as she went down the hall with the dogs."
Parker-Bowles earlier revealed that his children affectionately refer to their step-grandfather, King Charles III, as "Uppa," while Her Majesty is known as "Gaga."
"All of our children — my sister’s children too — have grown up with Gaga and Uppa. They've grown up from an early age, knowing no different. [They know] Gaga as Gaga, and that she's a really great grandmother who occasionally spoils them in a good way,"
They adore her," he added. "My daughter and my niece are at the age now where they ring her and text her, and are very happy doing their own thing together."
He said of His Majesty, "They adore the King because he is such a good, nice man. He has been a wonderful step-grandfather too; he has his own grandchildren, obviously. The children utterly adore him. From an early age, he’s read them stories, been there, and swung them around."
The Queen is surrounded by both grandchildren and step-grandchildren stemming from her marriage to Andrew Parker-Bowles, and later, Charles III. A charming report from 2016 recently resurfaced, which shared how the then-Duchess of Cornwall was also nicknamed "Gaga" by one of the young royals!
The name is apparently a reference to none other than Lady Gaga, whom the future queen met at the Royal Variety Performance in December of that year. Upon meeting the "Paparazzi" singer, HRH told her, "My own grandchildren call me Gaga. I don’t know if it’s because they think I am! It is funny but is still very sweet."
Although any sort of resemblance between the future queen and the provocative pop star is enough to make anyone scratch their heads, the nickname is certainly adorable!
The report further revealed that it is not known specifically which grandchild or step-grandchild gave her the name, it is believed Prince George is the culprit. Princess Charlotte was nearing the age of two at the time, and Princes Louis and Archie, along with Princess Lilibet Diana were not yet born. Some reports claim she could have very well been referring to one of her grandchildren and not the royals.
Marie Claire reported on Parker-Bowles' encounter.