Queen Elizabeth.Photo: Joe Giddens/POOL/AFP via Getty

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II smiles during a reception in the Ballroom of Sandringham House, the Queen’s Norfolk residence on February 5, 2022, as she celebrates the start of the Platinum Jubilee.

Queen Elizabethmay be one of the most famous people in the world, but a royal insider says that the monarch isn’t someone who “directly enjoys the limelight.”

The monarch, 95, is currentlyon the mendaftertesting positive for COVIDlast month — and she’s gearing up for her Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June, a long weekend of public events marking her 70th year on the throne.

“She’s not someone who directly enjoys the limelight, but she recognizes these anniversaries are moments for people and communities to come together,” the insider says in this week’s issue.

The occasion also serves another purpose on behalf of much of the world. “It is a big thank-you moment,” adds the insider.

Queen Elizabeth.Getty

Queen’s Platinum Jewels

Agiant slidewill also be installed at the Tower of London as part of an impressive floral display, and a carnival featuring 5,000 performers and a dragon float the size of an iconic red bus will be held in London.

“The celebrations embody the emotional and spiritual elements of the monarchy and what it means to peoples' hearts,” says royal historian Robert Lacey. “People feel them as milestones in their own lives too.”

British Royal family

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Queen Elizabethbecame monarchwhen she was just 25 following the sudden passing of her father, King George VI.

She became the longest-ruling monarch in U.K. history in Sept. 2015, when she surpassed her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria, who spent 63 years and 216 days on the throne.

Stephanie Petit

source: people.com