The Richard Spooner Column: Encounters of the royal kind�

Sadly, I never had the privilege of shaking the hand of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II but I was a hare 's breadth away from her presence on one occasion.

It was 1963 and I stood on the platform at the wonderful Victorian station in Kenilworth, awaiting the arrival of the royal train in my capacity as a hack on the local paper.

Just as an aside, Kenilworth Station became a victim of the famous Beeching Axe, one of many cuts in the railway network following a report by Richard Beeching, the first chairman of the British Railways Board.

The station at Kenilworth was tragically demolished in an appalling act of official vandalism to become a builder 's yard until it was re-built in 2018.

Anyway, there I was, caged in the media pen among other jostling journalists, waiting for the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh to arrive on their way to opening the Royal Agricultural Show at its new, permanent home in Stoneleigh.

As she stepped off the train to be greeted by local dignitaries, I was but a few feet away, witnessing at first hand her captivating smile. Unforgettable.

My only other royal encounters involved Prince Andrew and the Princess Royal. I met Prince Andrew at a trade event at the headquarters of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce when he remonstrated with me for taking notes during a meeting.

My two encounters with Princess Anne were much more rewarding. The first occasion was when I worked for the London Evening Standard after readers raised enough money to buy a scanner for St. Thomas 's Hospital. HRH graced us with her presence when she came to dedicate the machine.

My second meeting was some years in my current role as Press and PR director at Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. Again, it involved the Royal Show at Stoneleigh.

HRH was on her way to the Royal Show, which, sadly, was closed in 2009 in the face of dwindling attendances.

Before heading for Stoneleigh, she popped into Simpsons restaurant in Edgbaston in her capacity as President of the Scotch Beef Club. The organisation does what it says on the label, promoting beef born and reared in Scotland.

I was invited to join her to watch a demonstration by Coventry and Warwickshire butcher Aubrey Allen showing that good quality Scotch beef did not just involve expensive cuts - shin, for example.

I was in line to meet the Princess Royal with a name badge pinned to the left lapel of my jacket.

As I shook the royal hand, I said: “I 'm English lamb ma 'am, not Scotch beef ”, pointing to my badge. “Oh, how funny ”, she said and moved swifty on happy to get out of my presence, I assume.

However, I sat next to her during the demonstration. She was charming and regretted that her duties at the Royal Show prevented her staying for lunch.

Royal encounters always live long in the memory and I 'm sure that will be the case for the thousands of people queuing in London to pay their respects to her Majesty as she lies in State in Westminster Hall�

JL (Lamb)