Queen Elizabeth II meeting was 'like two nans nattering'

Irene Reid said the Queen put her at her ease

A lollipop lady who was appointed MBE by the late Queen Elizabeth II said their encounter was just like "two grannies having a natter".

Irene Reid, 81, of Longridge, Lancashire, who was honoured in 2012, said: "She put me so much at ease."

"She smiled and asked me, 'Are you a lollipop lady?' and how long I had done the job," Mrs Reid said.

When she told the Queen it had been 44 years, Her Majesty replied "oh my, that is very long time".

To which Mrs Reid said: "Not as long as 60 years."

"I told the Queen that everyone in the Ribble Valley sent their best wishes for her Diamond Jubilee," said Mrs Reid.

She added: "Once we got over the fairy-tale bit, it was like two grannies having a natter."

Christine Barnes said the Queen was radiant when she met her

Mrs Reid is one of several people who have shared their memories with BBC Radio Lancashire of the late Queen.

Another MBE recipient Christine Barnes, who received her honour for services to the Girl Guides, recalled the time she met the Queen at Windsor more than nine years ago.

"My husband was very sick with cancer and a good friend of the family phoned Buckingham Palace to ask if the ceremony could be brought forward, which to my surprise the Palace agreed to," she said.

Mrs Barnes said despite only seeing the Queen for "quite a brief time", the moment is "etched" in her memory.

"She was absolutely amazing, although I don't think she understood a word I said.

"The Queen asked me about what I had done and it all came rushing out in my best Burnley accent and I said, 'I can't believe I've got it ma'am, I just I do everything I did like a normal day.'

"She just had this bemused look on her face," Mrs Barnes said, adding: "The Queen's smile was amazing, it radiated from her."

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