The Queen presided over 15 prime ministers in her long reign, meeting with each of them in private once a week to discuss happenings in the country.
They would also encounter one another at various state functions and each year the Queen would open parliament by reading a speech outlining her prime minister’s plans for the coming year.
No records of their conversations were kept and the details were meant to be secret but were from time to time revealed to the public through leaks from inside the palace or government.
Her opinion on each of her leaders was also supposed to remain secret but the odd news story would offer a glimpse into her relationship with them by way of remarks from an insider.
Prime ministers have spoken fondly of their meetings with the Queen, saying she was a good character and someone they felt they could confide in.
After the Queen’s death on 8 September 2022, the six living former prime ministers – John Major, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson – gathered for the accession ceremony of King Charles III.
Scroll through the images below to see the Queen with every prime minister who served in her reign.
1953-55: Winston Churchill was said to be close with the Queen, having known her since she was an infant. She was said to have valued his guidance (AFP/Getty)1955-57: Things were said to be more formal between the Queen and short-lived premier Anthony Eden (PA)1957-63: Harold Macmillan said the Queen was ‘a great support, because she is the one person you can talk to’ (PA)1963-64: Alec Douglas-Home, the 20th century’s shortest serving prime minister, had a friendly relationship with the Queen. He was a childhood friend of the Queen Mother (Popperfoto/Getty)1964-70, 74-76: Harold Wilson is thought to have been one of the Queen’s favourite prime ministers. He is said to have amused her with his northern manner (PA)1970-74: Ted Heath famously fell asleep during dinner with the Queen; though this happened many years after his premiership. A few years before the dinner she joked with him that he was ‘expendable’ (PA)1976-79: James Callaghan, right, reportedly said of the Queen: ‘One of the great things about her is that she always seems able to see the funny side of life. All the conversations were very enjoyable’ (PA)1979-90: Margaret Thatcher and the Queen (pictured here in Zambia not long after the former’s first election victory) were said not to get on. The Queen reportedly did not privately support the prime minister’s refusal to impose tough sanctions on Apartheid South Africa (Getty)1990-97: John Major, the first prime minister younger than the Queen, came to the rescue of the Royal Family in 1992, its ‘annus horribilis’. He has since been on close terms with the family and was made a guardian to Princes William and Harry after Diana’s death (PA)1997-2007: Tony Blair has spoken warmly of the Queen but their relationship was one of clashing personalities. As the Telegraph said in 2007, the Queen 'loves the countryside, country sports, horses and dogs. Mr Blair ... prefers the city life, holidays in Barabados, tennis and football’ (Getty)2007-10: Gordon Brown’s biographer said he was ‘someone the Queen felt she understood’ as a Scot and son of a minister (PA)2010-16: As a descendant of Georgian King William IV, David Cameron is a distant relative of the Queen. Cameron 'displeased' the palace by revealing details of a private conversation with the Queen about the Scottish referendum in 2014 (Getty)2016-19: Theresa May and her impersonal touch came to disappoint the Queen when she refused to discuss Brexit plans in private during a stay at Balmoral Castle (Getty)2019-2022: Boris Johnson’s relationship with the Queen was unique as they could not meet face-to-face for the bulk of his premiership. Not long after he entered Downing Street he was forced to appear before the Supreme Court to deny lying to her about his plan to prorogue parliament (Getty)2022: Liz Truss was appointed by the Queen at Balmoral shortly before Her Majesty’s death (EPA)
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