Not in Front of the Corgis Read Online Free PDF Page A

situated on the first floor, reached via the Grand Staircase.
    The first room is the Guard Chamber, a small anteroom where, in previous reigns, an officer would be stationed to check the credentials of anyone visiting the sovereign before allowing them to proceed.
    From here, one is shown into the Green Drawing Room, where, as the name implies, the walls, ceilingand even the chairs are all in that colour. It is the central apartment on the west side of the Palace and in Queen Victoria’s day, this was where the royal party would emerge to wave at the crowds in front of the Palace and along The Mall. Of course, Buckingham Palace was U-shaped then, without the north front wall that was erected after Marble Arch was removed, stone by stone, to enable Victoria to see – and more importantly – to be clearly seen by her people without any obstruction.
    The Throne Room next door contains the throne chairs of The Queen, Prince Philip and those of previous reigns dotted around the room. On the evening of Prince William’s wedding, his brother Harry took over the room and transformed it into a disco for the younger guests who had not been invited to the official wedding breakfast. Surely the only time such an event had been held in this august setting? One could almost feel the disapproving glare of Queen Victoria.
    The Blue Drawing Room, which used to be called the South Drawing Room, is said by many visitors to be the most elegant of the State Apartments, but others claim it is too cold and impersonal. The blue flock wallpaper was installed by Queen Mary at the beginning of the twentieth century and the floor-to-ceiling Corinthian columns were painted to resemble onyx in order to cover up defects in the scagliola during the reign of Queen Victoria. The aim of King George IV and his designer Nash was to create an aura of extreme opulence and no one could deny that they succeeded. The Music Room contains the grand piano that has been played by Nöel Coward and Andrew LloydWebber, among others, but since Princess Margaret and Diana, Princess of Wales are no longer with us, no other member of the Royal Family plays it. The Music Room has also been used for a number of royal christenings since enemy bombers in the Second World War destroyed the Chapel Royal. The White Drawing Room is the most welcoming and warm in the Palace, where the predominant colour is in fact not white but yellow. In one corner is a large fixture containing a full-size mirror and when a function is being held, a footman is stationed alongside. At a signal he presses a button and the entire fitment swings open to reveal the Royal Family who have been waiting in the Royal Closet, a small drawing room hidden behind the mirror, to have their own pre-function drinks: gin and Dubonnet for The Queen, whisky and soda or a sweet German wine for Prince Philip, Coke or orange juice for Princess Anne. The tableaux can surprise new guests who have not been let into the secret of the swinging mirror and more than one lady has found to her confusion that, instead of her own reflection, she sees the entire Royal Family looking back at her.
    The Picture Gallery and Cross Picture Gallery are two more of the State Apartments brought into use when a reception is being held, and the State Ball Supper Room was the one used for the Wedding Breakfast of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. It is an elegant room and only the immediate families and the other royal guests were asked to sit here. The rest of the 600 invited back to the Palace used the other apartments, with the main State Apartment being the State Ballroom, built at a cost of £250,000 in 1848 byQueen Victoria. Well, she didn’t actually lay any bricks of course, but she did order its construction. It is the largest single private room in London and at today’s prices would cost around £25 million.
    Several State Apartments are never open to the public, including the Chinese Dining Room, the Buhl Guest Suite and the