She's a global symbol of power, peace and grace – even
Diddy
wants an invite
to her house.
And don't forget about
the crown
.
Queen Elizabeth II might just have it all – even more so as she prepares for
April 29
, the day grandson
Prince William
will exchange vows with princess-to-be
Kate Middleton
.
In honor of the throne that she has ruled for 59 years here's five things to know about the Queen (take notes, Kate!):
1. She might not want to talk to you
And you'll know it – just keep your eyes focused on her handbag or ring. It's a little-known secret in the course of royal affairs, but the Queen's handlers
know what gestures
to watch for at social gatherings. If she's had enough face-time, she'll often switch her purse from one arm to another or spin her ring.
2. Maybe you should just Tweet her
You can join the 318,399 people (and counting!) who are already
Facebook
official with the Queen – meaning they "like" the official home of the British Monarchy on the popular social networking site. The page went live in November, but it's just one example of how Her Majesty gets around in cyberspace. You can also keep up with the hip Highness on
Twitter
,
Flickr
and
YouTube
.
3. She's a dog person
She may be the cat's meow at Buckingham's Palace, but when it comes to four-legged friends, she much prefers Fido. According to the
official Web site
of the British Monarchy, "The Royal Family seem[s] to have embraced dogs as their favoured pets." The queen currently owns four corgis – Linnet, Willow, Monty and Holly – and three dorgis (dachshund and corgi mix) – Cider, Candy and Vulcan.
4. She listens to show tunes – courtesy of the Obamas
Leave it to the commander in chief to bring Broadway to the palace. On his maiden trip to Europe as President, Barack Obama – along with First Lady
Michelle Obama
– showed the Queen some American hospitality
with an iPod
, loaded with an "ultimate Broadway" collection of 40 tunes. So what's the Queen listening to? "People" from
Funny Girl
, "Maria" from
West Side Story
and "Seasons of Love" from
Rent
, to name a few.
5. She's Britain's oldest monarch
At 84 years old, she's ruled the throne since February 1952 when she was just 25 years old. She officially snagged the title of
Britain's oldest-ever monarch
in December 2007 at 81 years and 243 days old, passing Queen Victoria.