The Queen was a huge fan of the children’s TV show Grange Hill – and still performed her own ten-minute routine of its main characters in her final years.
The late royal, who passed away 16 months ago aged 96, entertained dinner guests with her sketch on the programme years after it concluded its 31 series in 2008.
The monarch, who also loved impersonations, would mimic the voices of many protagonists from the show, which is centred around a comprehensive school and featured favourites such as ‘Tucker’, Roland and Zammo.
Many of its actors then went on to find fame on television, including roles on EastEnders.
The Queen’s in-depth knowledge was revealed by biographer Gyles Brandreth during a discussion about Grange Hill on his Rosebud podcast today with comedian and actor Rob Brydon, who is also known for his expert impressions.
Despite being 51 years old when the series first hit TV screens in 1978, the Queen became an avid viewer, Gyles was told by close friends of the former monarch.
The Queen was a huge fan of the children’s TV show Grange Hill – and still performed her own ten-minute routine of its main characters in her final years. Pictured in 2022
The broadcaster and former politician, who wrote a 2022 biography titled ‘Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait’, said: ‘I was told only recently by proper friends of the Queen, that they were – not many years before her death – at a dinner at Windsor Castle with the Queen, Prince Edward, and his wife Sophie, and just two other people.
‘And the subject of Grange Hill came up. And the Queen did a routine – a routine lasting ten minutes on Grange Hill.
‘She played all the characters with the accents as a complete set piece.’
Rob then revealed that when he started at Porthcawl Comprehensive in Wales, he was scared because his image of what to expect was based on his viewing of the hit show – and Gyles said he was in good company.
‘It wasn’t just you who was enjoying Grange Hill,’ the royal writer added. ‘While you were watching, Elizabeth II was watching too.’
Gyles also surprised Rob when he said that the Queen was an admirer of his work – with the Welsh comedian famed for impersonating stars such as Sir Ronnie Corbett, and mimicking other voices on his TV series, The Trip, alongside Steve Coogan.
‘One of the people who was an admirer of yours was the late Elizabeth II,’ Gyles said.
‘I wrote a biography recently of the Queen, and she was very much into impressionists, and she loved impressions.’
The late royal, who passed away 16 months ago aged 96, entertained dinner guests with her sketch on the programme years after it concluded its 31 series in 2008. Pictured, the show cast in 2003
The Queen’s in-depth knowledge was revealed by biographer Gyles Brandreth (pictured earlier this month) during a discussion about Grange Hill on his Rosebud podcast today
Gyles spoke with comedian and actor Rob Brydon (pictured in July), who is also known for his expert impressions
The BBC announced that the gates of the London-based comprehensive were to close in 2008, almost 30 years after the first episode, claiming the series no longer reflected children’s lives.
Although details of the new reboot have been kept under wraps, Philip, 74, revealed that the feature will be based on the character Jessica Samuels.
The idea was sparked by actress Sara Sugarman, 61, who starred as the the rebellious School Action Group leader.
In its heyday Grange Hill featured hard-hitting stories of drug addiction, teenage pregnancy and bullying at school
Speaking in a new interview with Deadline, Philip said that after Sara reached out it was like ‘a light bulb in my head’ to reboot the show.
He explained: ‘I thought, “Why don’t I look beyond the main characters, which is obvious, and we’ll have them all there for nostalgia, but where did Jessica go?”‘
‘We don’t want it to be like a lot of these things where they just take the characters, use the brand and throw something together. I wanted to think about how best we could revisit the show.’
Sara said she won’t necessarily reprise her role for the film, as she explained she had to audition like everyone else.
Teasing at the return of other cast members such as Todd Carty, Sheila Chandra and Sean Maguire, she added: ‘It wouldn’t be Grange Hill without the Grange Hillers, and there will be some surprises.’
In its heyday Grange Hill featured hard-hitting stories of drug addiction, teenage pregnancy and bullying at school.
Rosebud with Gyles Brandreth is released every Friday on all major platforms, and can be heard at https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/rosebud-with-gyles-brandreth/id1704806594