Liverpool butler remembers the first time he made the Queen her favourite drink in a 'tumbler'
A butler from Liverpool who served the Queen says it was a "privilege" and they had a "good laugh" together.
Tommy Walsh began this line of work at Grosvenor House, a five-star hotel in Mayfair London, when he was 25-years-old.
He recalls the first time he made the Queen her favourite drink, he put it in a 'tumbler' glass my mistake. When he quickly realised his mistake and poured the drink into a wine glass, the Queen said, 'that's better'.
Recalling the first time he met Her Majesty Tommy said he "fell to pieces".
He said: "I was standing by the red curtain and up the stair case they come - the Queen, the Queen's Mother, Princess Diana - and it was all the white clothing and all this jewellery.
"I remember just making some gasping noise and someone pulling the curtain and telling me to shush.
"They said 'quiet or go home' and I have never forgotten that."
He added: "Then life changes and through the years I met the Queen and served The Queen [many times]."
The last time Tommy served the late monarch was in November 2019 where they had a "good laugh".
The 74-year-old said he remembers what the small, intimate event was like.
"The Queen coming to my house" as the people there were "all friends" and Tommy knew them," he said.
"When it came to dessert I had a copper skillet, 12 to 15 inches long and wide, with a Crème Brûlée with a hard, toffee crust on top and I held it and passed it to the Queen and she said 'how on earth is one getting to this, how do you do this?'
"So I said 'ma'am why don't you turn the spoon over and then come down and give it a good crack' and she tried and turned it over and we were all laughing because people later on said to me 'what were you laughing about with dessert?'
"So she did it and she said 'oh god I knew that was going to happen'."
"I remember doing it and I knew the 12 people in the house and I thought to myself it's like The Queen just coming to my house, sitting there on the sofa."
On another occasion, Tommy said he forgot his glasses and struggled to pour the coffee due to the cup being lined gold inside, however The Queen stepped in to help.
He said: "I didn't even have my glasses with me because I got sent there so quickly.
"I was pouring the coffee and The Queen said to me 'all the way' and you have to be honest and I am not a shy guy - I am from Liverpool - so I said 'terribly sorry ma'am, I haven't got my glasses and I can't see the coffee in the cup.'
Afterwards Mr Walsh recalled Her Majesty saying: "We will have to do that again when you come back unless you find your glasses."
Tommy said it was a "privilege" to serve with Her Majesty and also has a photograph of them together which he said was "wonderful to have".
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