‘A day Sheffield will never forget’: former Lord Mayor recalls Queen Elizabeth II visit

“When she walked into the room she would radiate. It wasn’t gloating, it wasn’t ‘look at me’, it was just a genuine, thoughtful, happy person. It was that gloriousness of her being so humble. It was just amazing.”

Her Majesty visited the city several times throughout her life but it was a uniquely Sheffield day, with no other engagements for the Queen, when she visited on Thursday, May 22, 2003.

This was just over half a century into her reign, which would become the longest in British history.

Huge crowds of thousands of people waving flags and cheering filled the streets while onlookers leaned out of windows above to get a glimpse of Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh.

The Sheffield Star reported the sounds of shouts and screams were “deafening” and Union Jacks were “flying off the shelves” as there was a “huge rush” to buy them.

Diane was by the Queen’s side the entire day after becoming Lord Mayor less than 24 hours before.

“She was much smaller than I anticipated and she had the bluest of blue eyes,” she said. “You just felt as though she was a member of your family.”

Despite it being a “very massive” first day on the job, Diane’s nerves were exhausted by the time she met the Queen. Just after being inaugurated she opened the ice skating rink and had to walk a red carpet escorted by a polar bear and penguin which she said was “quite a shock”.

“That next day I thought, well, I’ve got to show Sheffield how proud we are to have Her Majesty here and I’ve got to make sure that everything goes to plan and that she has a good, memorable time.”

Like all royal duties, the day was planned meticulously “down to the second”.

First, there was a visit to Fir Vale School, then a walk through the Millennium Gallery before the grand opening of the Winter Gardens followed by a stroll through the Peace Gardens en route to the Town Hall for lunch and an appearance on the balcony.

Children sang God Save the Queen, musicians including the Sheffield Pipe Band played and families of the Armed Forces – who were facing the Iraq War at the time – spoke to the royal couple about their experiences.

Her Majesty had a “lovely broad smile” as they walked through the Peace Gardens and a boy of about age six approached her and said: “I love you, Queen.”

“Oh it’s choking me up,” Diane said remembering the moment. “It was so sweet and we literally just looked at each other and it was just so touching.”

Diane still has a copy of the lunch menu. It featured asparagus spears and parma ham with hollandaise sauce for starter, roast lamb in a herb crust with red wine sauce and a panache of slow roasted vegetables for main, and summer berry filo horns with raspberry sauce for dessert. Coffee and mints followed.

The Queen and Diane chatted about their love of animals, particularly the corgis and horses, over the meal which was described as a “glittering occasion” in the Sheffield Telegraph.

Before lunch they visited the Lord Mayor’s parlour for a comfort break and tipple.

Her Majesty requested her signature cocktail: a Dubonnet and gin, which was famously also the Queen Mother’s favourite drink.

A search party was sent when they realised Sheffield Council did not stock it but the ingredients were successfully tracked down. “Embarrassment averted”, Diane said.

Her husband Robert, who was not as enamoured with the royals as her before the visit, had the duty of escorting the Duke of Edinburgh during their Sheffield excursion.

He was concerned about being part of the fanfare but was “absolutely impressed” by how they interacted with people.

One encounter that particularly charmed him was watching the Duke have a deep conversation with an elderly gentleman who fell on hard times. They spoke at length about his war medals and his life.

“That’s what my husband said touched him the most was that the Duke was just speaking to him and he could see they were compassionate…It’s not just a case of shaking hands and moving on, they were genuinely interested.”

She added: “Afterwards, he said his admiration for the royal couple had gone above and beyond.”

What did the Queen think of Sheffield?

Diane said: “She was amazed, she thought it was lovely and said how happy she was to be there and what a lovely place it was.

“I would say that would be the same wherever she went because she would never like to put one place over another – the impression I got was that everybody was the same. Nobody was more important than anybody else and that came across in the way she spoke to people. She was always so thoughtful.”

Diane received a lovely message after the visit to say the Queen and Duke thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

‘We will never see the likes of her again’

Flowers were laid in the Peace Gardens and tributes were written in Sheffield’s books of condolence since the announcement Queen Elizabeth II had died aged 96 at Balmoral Castle on Thursday afternoon.

Her record-breaking reign began aged 25 following the death of her father King George VI.

The Queen’s life spanned the entire history of modern Britain. Change was constant and dramatic and while 15 prime ministers came and went, she remained the figurehead of the nation, unwavering in her commitment to duty.

The country is now in a state of national mourning ahead of her funeral on Monday, September 19.

“I was devastated,” Diane said of when she heard the news. “Like the rest of the country, we’ve lost somebody that we will never see the likes of again.

“What she’s actually given the country is far beyond all expectations, I think wherever you are from you can appreciate all the hard work she’s done.”

The Queen’s son King Charles III has now ascended the throne. Sheffield hosted a proclamation for South Yorkshire in Barker’s Pool today to officially declare the new monarch.

Diane met the then prince during her time as Lord Mayor when he visited the Botanical Gardens and has confidence in him.

“I’m certain she will have passed a lot of those skills on to King Charles,” she said. “He has got some big shoes to fill. I’m sure he will do her proud because he knows what duty is about. He’s another compassionate and caring person.”

Remembering a compassionate Queen

Like many others across the city, country and world, Diane will be flying a Union Jack at her home, laying flowers at the Peace Gardens and writing a tribute in the book of condolence.

“For the ordinary person in the street it’s whatever it is that you can do and how you feel that you can do it,” she said.

“In a way, I still feel as though she’s not gone. It’s literally like losing family having lost my mum a few years back and she’d be a couple of years older than the Queen but her sister was the same age as the Queen.”

Her legacy will be of duty, compassion and thinking of others Diane said.

“She definitely inspired me. I think she’s inspired so many people to do things and look at ways of doing things.

“Not everything is always going to go your own way but it’s about trying to be the best that you can and do what you can to help others.”

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Before leaving, the Queen was given flowers and Sheffield-made scissors as souvenirs. In return, she gave Diane a silver coin, which is tradition for good luck.

“She thoroughly enjoyed it and I can still remember her waving to us when she left – it was just like I was waving to a member of my family,” Diane said. “It’s a day that I will never, ever forget.”