Anna Wintour recalls time Queen told her she once walked in a fashion show: ‘She said it with a joy and humour that lit up the room’-Sophie Laughton-Entertainment – Metro

The Queen and Anna Wintour met at London Fashion Week in 2018 (Picture: Tristan Fewings/BFC/Getty Images)

Queen Elizabeth II had a brief turn at modelling before she was crowned, Anna Wintour has revealed.

Writing for Vogue, Wintour recalled how the monarch told her she had taken part in a fashion show as a young princess.

The pair met at London Fashion Week in 2018, and were pictured sitting next to each other at Richard Quinn’s show, where Her Majesty presented the designer with the inaugural Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design.

Following the Queen’s death aged 96 at Balmoral Castle last Thursday, Wintour joined the likes of Daniel Craig and Sir Elton John in paying tribute to the ‘dedicated’ monarch.

‘For 70 years, Her Majesty was a beacon of continuity and a perfect example of someone who lived by a clearly defined set of values,’ she wrote.

‘We hear so much about the end of an era but her passing, after so many decades of dedicated service, is undoubtedly that.

The Queen sat front row at designer Richard Quinn’s show (Picture: Yui Mok – Pool/Getty Images)

The Vogue editor-in-chief was criticised at the time for leaving her sunglasses on while talking to the Queen (Picture: Yui Mok – Pool/Getty Images)

She continued: ‘I might have left England for America years ago but the admiration I felt for her has never diminished. I’m not alone in that regard – the Queen touched everyone, wherever they were in the world, maybe because despite her sense of absolute adherence and devotion to the role, who she was as a woman always shone through.

The meeting between the Vogue editor-in-chief and the Queen became notorious after it was speculated Wintour broke royal protocol by continuing to wear her sunglasses.

Sitting front row at fashion week alongside Queen Elizabeth II, Wintour kept her sunglasses on as the pair chatted,

Etiquette expert Grant Harrold later told the Press Association: ‘Ms Wintour should know that to wear sunglasses when talking to another person, with no medical reason, is unacceptable.

‘She should have removed them before being in the presence of the Queen, let alone in discussion.’

Her Majesty revealed she took part in a fashion show as a young royal before she became Queen at the age of 25 (Picture: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

The Queen’s trademark colourful outfits made her a style icon (Picture: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Despite the faux-pas, the pair seemed to have got on well, with the Queen apparently ‘delighted’ to be there.

Recalling the ‘unforgettable’ moment the Queen spoke about her fashionable past, Wintour described how Her Majesty’s ‘joy and humour that lit up the room’.

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‘Her smile and her keen interest in others never failed her. I experienced that first-hand when I sat with her at designer Richard Quinn’s show, just before she presented him with the inaugural Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design.

‘She was so delighted to be there, telling me how she had appeared in a fashion show before she became Queen. She said it with a joy and humour that lit up the room: an everyday occurrence for Her Majesty, an unforgettable one for the rest of us.’

Even during her reign, the Queen was hailed as a style icon, and was well known for her trademark colourful hats and outfits.

Following the Queen’s tragic death, there was speculation that London Fashion Week, scheduled for September 16-20, would not go ahead.

Organisers have now confirmed the event will go ahead with ‘moments of respect’ for the monarch.

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