Like many Australians born between the Wars and earlier, she was an avid Royal watcher; more so because she had lived in England as a child. When asked why, later in her life, she said "I don't know – I just love the Royal family – I just love them."
Although there had been six Royal visits to Australia since 1897, this was to be the first one by a ruling monarch – and what an unusual monarch. The beautiful Queen Elizabeth II had married to her tall, handsome and dashing beau of many years, Prince Phillip, soon after the War. By the time of the tour, they had a fairytale 'pigeon pair' of children, Prince Charles and Princess Anne, who were almost the same ages as my older brother and myself.
As Princess Elizabeth, she had postponed her planned earlier visit due to the death of her father, King George VI, and her subsequent coronation. She was now coming as Queen Elizabeth II and most Australians, who at that time still felt 'English' in culture even if they had never been to England, had an even more heightened anticipation of this visit, due to that delay.
And this Royal Tour did turn out to be like none other.
In one sense, it was the end of an era of the 'pomp and circumstance' of traditional European Royals visiting their loyal subjects in far flung dominions, where they expected some adulation and formality; and in another sense it was the first of the era of the modern, casual Royal tour, where the monarch and her family are presented 'warts and all' as people like the rest of us.
The Queen Mother (also Queen Elizabeth) had done much in the previous generation to modernise and 'humanise' the Royal family, and she and King George VI were revered for staying in London during the Blitz of World War II and visiting the common people in the East End to empathise with their plight. Their leadership was exemplary. Princess Elizabeth (as she was then) had also done her duty as many young woman did during War time, by being a mechanic in the Motor Pool of the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS).
My mother had 'fronted up' to help the community in a similar way by joining the Land Army. This, along with her similar age to the Queen and their experiences as young mothers, must have made her feel an even greater sense of empathy than usual to her monarch.
Our family lived on a dairy on Crediton 60 miles west of Mackay, Queensland on the Great Dividing Range, at the head of the Pioneer River. Even in that part of the country, remote from any capital city, the Royal Visit was passing close by. I can only guess at my mother's excitement by looking now at her vast collection of, it seems, every magazine and newspaper article available about that Royal Tour.
Although I was only a toddler of three years of age, I still recall the fuss and the trip to Mackay.
My mother, my older brother, myself and our younger sister in a stroller, waited with all the crowds in Mackay as the Royal vehicle drove past ever so slowly with the Queen waving to her subjects of the Pioneer Valley.
This was in complete contrast to another Royal Tour that I was privileged to witness in the early 1970s when I was working as a locomotive fireman. I was rostered at Port Kembla, on the NSW South Coast on the day that Princess Anne's ship docked at that port.
I thought I might get a glimpse of the Princess after her disembarkation, as her Rolls Royce drove past. It so happened that the locomotive was standing alongside the road from the jetty that the Royal vehicles were to drive, so I alighted from the locomotive and waited with others lining the road, expecting the Royal vehicle to slowly glide by, as had the Queen's motorcade all those years previously.
In fact, the Royal convoy, led by four Police motorcyclists sped so fast by us, that there was not enough time to even give a humble wave. I must say I was disappointed and a little miffed that this Royal watcher couldn't get his 'arm wave' in.
It all reminded me how differently the Bible speaks of the King of Heaven through his Son the Lord Jesus Christ. Every person from the most humble subject who falls at the foot of the cross in repentance is a true heir (Romans chapter 8 verse 17) with the full rights and titles to the Kingdom.