{"id":239244,"date":"2026-05-21T12:58:49","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:58:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/239244\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T12:58:49","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:58:49","slug":"queen-elizabeth-iis-top-secret-holyroodhouse-apartments-exposed-for-milestone-occasion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/239244\/","title":{"rendered":"Queen Elizabeth II’s top-secret Holyroodhouse apartments exposed for milestone occasion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ever wondered what it’s like to live like a Queen? Members of the public are now getting the chance to peek inside the private apartments of the late Queen Elizabeth II<\/a> at Holyroodhouse<\/a> in Edinburgh for the first time ever. King Charles<\/a> has decided to allow the spaces to be made public to celebrate what would have been the year of his mother’s 100th birthday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On Thursday, there was a press preview of the rooms, so allow us to give you a special tour of the previously top secret spaces, including a cosy sitting room, a private breakfast room where Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip used to dine and even Her Majesty’s former writing desk, complete with all-important red despatch boxes.<\/p>\n

Keep scrolling to see photos from inside the apartments\u2026<\/p>\n

\"royal\u00a9 Getty Images<\/p>\n

The lounge area has a warm colour theme<\/p>\n

The sitting room<\/p>\n

The apartments include a grand yet cosy sitting space, and highlights are two red sofas with clashing lime green cushions, gold framed artwork on the walls and a plush floral carpet. <\/p>\n

\"sitting<\/p>\n

Can you spot the TV?<\/p>\n

A relatable feature is the television positioned off to one side on an unassuming TV stand, a modern contrast to the rest of the historic space with its antiques and regal touches.<\/p>\n

\"teddy\u00a9 Getty Images<\/p>\n

This teddy was sentimental to the late Queen<\/p>\n

The Queen’s teddy bear<\/p>\n

The late queen always asked for her beloved teddy to be displayed on the sofa just like this, it has been revealed. The monarch was gifted ‘Haddington’ bear circa 2000 and Emma Stead, the curator for the Palace of Holyroodhouse, told PA Media: “The Queen was given him as a gift and after that she asked that whenever she arrived here, he be placed in that particular position on the sofa awaiting her arrival. She had a few personal objects that she liked to be placed quite precisely.”<\/p>\n

\"writing<\/p>\n

Where Queen Elizabeth II used to work<\/p>\n

The writing desk<\/p>\n

Positioned in front of the window in the sitting room is a writing desk, which is where Her Majesty used to sit to do her work. The curator has decided to keep two red despatch boxes out on display, and these iconic red leather briefcases are used by the British monarch to house top-secret government papers. In addition to these, the desk features fountain pens and ink (an enemy of King Charles –\u00a0case in point<\/a>), a paper weight and official headed paper. <\/p>\n

\"royal\u00a9 Getty Images<\/p>\n

Anyone for eggs?<\/p>\n

The breakfast room<\/p>\n

The breakfast room is where Her Majesty would have often enjoyed her morning meal with her husband, Prince Philip, ahead of a day of engagements. The centre of the room has a modest round wooden table, which may seem quite small in size given the grandeur of the room but it clearly indicates the private nature of this space. <\/p>\n

\"wooden\u00a9 Getty Images<\/p>\n

The breakfast sideboard<\/p>\n

A dark wooden sideboard has been dressed with ornate green crockery, resembling a breakfast buffet area in a luxury hotel.<\/p>\n

Learning curator Richard Williams told PA Media: “[The Queen] would take breakfast between 9am and 9.15am, with the Queen\u2019s piper playing down below in the garden.<\/p>\n

“She and the Duke of Edinburgh would be here, the Scotsman newspaper would be delivered, also the Radio Times and the Racing Post as well.<\/p>\n

“After the Duke of Edinburgh passed away, breakfast was the only meal that she would eat by herself, and she would sit in the chair with her back to the fireplace so she could see all the members of staff and people\u2019s comings and goings in front of her.”<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"dressing\u00a9 Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Queen’s clothes are on display<\/p>\n

The dressing room<\/p>\n

A room lined with large wooden wardrobes, which could well be a dressing room, has been used to display some of the late Queen’s former outfits. The items include one dress and two coat dresses which are hung beautifully on mannequins. In addition, the team has selected an array of accessories to complete the exhibit.<\/p>\n

\"woman\u00a9 Getty Images<\/p>\n

Tickets are on sale now<\/p>\n

Tour details<\/p>\n

Lucky visitors to Holyroodhouse this summer will be able to see the apartments up close. Tickets cost \u00a371.00 per adult (if booked online) and the price includes a 1-hour guided tour of the apartments and then access to the rest of Holyroodhouse. The apartment will be open each day from 21 May to 10 September, but there are excluded dates listed on\u00a0rct.uk<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"The\u00a9 Royal Collection TrustAbout Holyroodhouse<\/p>\n

Holyroodhouse is a tourist hotspot located at the base of Edinburgh’s famous Royal Mile, and it serves as the official Scottish residence of the British monarch. As well as being a choice spot for royal fans, it is a working palace and plays host to formal ceremonies, state affairs, and the King’s annual Holyrood Week celebrations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ever wondered what it’s like to live like a Queen? Members of the public are now getting the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":239245,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[2419,9,24,63,122,124,123,2421,1245],"class_list":["post-239244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-homes","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-royal-homes","tag-the-queen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=239244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239244\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/239245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=239244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=239244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=239244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}