Who Are The Only Two People Queen Elizabeth Is Guaranteed To Pick Up A Call From?
Queen Elizabeth II has always made it pretty clear that family is the most important thing in her life. After Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their decision to step down from their roles as full-time senior members of the royal family, Queen Elizabeth was quick to point out in her statement that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would always be a part of the family, even if they were living thousands of miles away. She said that she was "proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family" despite the given circumstances, and that "Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved members of my family."
And while the queen certainly does hold members of her family — especially those who rank senior — close to her heart, that doesn't necessarily mean she'll pick up the phone when she knows they are calling her. In fact, it's been suggested that the queen only picks up the phone from two people in her life and, surprisingly, they aren't the two people royal fans would expect, either.
Queen Elizabeth won't pick up the phone for just anyone
With her son Prince Charles being the next heir to the throne and Prince William right behind him, there's no doubt that Queen Elizabeth II wants to make sure the monarchy is left in good hands when her reign is over. But that doesn't necessarily mean she'll make the effort to pick up the phone when they call. In fact, there are only two people within "The Firm" that the queen will pick up for, according to royal commentator Jonathan Sacerdoti.
He told the Royally US podcast that one of those two people isn't even a member of the royal family. He said (via Page Six), "Apparently, the Queen has two people who she speaks to the most on her phones and she also apparently has a mobile phone which is said to be Samsung packed with anti-hacker encryption by MI6 so nobody can hack into her phone. But the two people she phones the most is said to be her daughter Princess Anne and her racing manager John Warren."
This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, as the queen has always been particularly close with her daughter Anne, as detailed by Hello! Now, as far as her racing manager is concerned, he is considered one of the most talented horsemen in the U.K. and he's someone who's clearly trustworthy enough that the queen has him on speed dial.
Even Prince Harry can't connect with his grandmother
The news that Queen Elizabeth only picks up the phone for two people shouldn't surprise anyone. Even her own grandson Prince Harry admitted to having a hard time trying to contact her after he and his wife Meghan Markle decided to step down from their roles as full-time working members of the royal family. During his interview with Oprah Winfrey, Harry said that after his grandmother had invited him to Sandringham to discuss his exit from royal life, her plans abruptly changed, according to her royal handlers.
After getting a message from the queen's private secretary saying that she was busy, Harry said he "rang her from [their former U.K. home Frogmore Cottage], that night, and said, 'I was thinking about coming anyway, but I hear you're now busy.' And she said, 'Yes, there's something in my diary that I didn't know that I had.' I said, 'Well, what about the rest of the week?' She goes, 'Oh, that's busy now as well.' Okay, I didn't want to push because I kind of knew what was going on," as detailed by People.
And while the queen is very particular about who she likes to talk to on the phone, she doesn't hesitate when it comes to this.
Queen Elizabeth loves a good Zoom call with her family
In his interview with James Corden on "The Late Late Show" back in February, Prince Harry revealed that he and his wife Meghan Markle often had Zoom calls with Queen Elizabeth II and her late husband, Prince Philip, so they could get a glimpse of great-grandson Archie running around their Montecito home. Harry said at the time, "Both my grandparents do Zoom. They've seen Archie running around. My grandfather instead of pressing 'leave meeting' he just goes 'doof' [and slams his laptop closed]. So, we're like 'Ok, bye.'"
With that said, it doesn't sound like Queen Elizabeth is intentionally ignoring her family members or blocking them from calling her at any given time. Instead, she's simply has her favorites who she has on speed dial just like any other mother and grandparent out there. She certainly can't be blamed for picking favorites, right?