Late Queen’s private rooms at Scottish palace to open to visitors for first time

Queen Elizabeth II’s private rooms at her official Scottish residence are to be opened to the public for the first time to mark the centenary of her birth.

Visitors will be able to tour the “personal lived-in” apartments used by the Queen and Prince Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh, as they go behind the scenes at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

These include the Queen’s Dressing Room where she would prepare and dress for official engagements, and the Sitting Room where she would work from her red boxes and relax by watching the horse racing on TV.

The Queen and Philip used to occupy a suite of private rooms, which date from the 17th century, on the palace’s east side, which offered views of the gardens and Holyrood Park, during their stays at the monarchy’s official residence in Scotland.

The Royal Collection Trust said: “These modestly decorated rooms offer a rare glimpse into the personal ‘lived-in’ spaces used during private moments between official duties.”

Tours, which will run for 100 days, will take visitors to the Royal Breakfast Room, where the Queen and Philip would dine privately on a circular table covered with a white linen table cloth, and where the walls are adorned by large Flemish tapestries from the 1650s.

Small groups will be given a rare glimpse of the royal family’s life behind closed doors by expert guides who will share the history of the spaces – used by successive monarchs and their families since Queen Victoria’s reign – and reveal how they were used by Elizabeth II and her consort.

In the Sitting Room, the Queen would carry out her official duties by reviewing the papers and documents presented in her red boxes and also holding private audiences, working from a small antique desk facing the central window, overlooking the gardens.

The room, which features a large central chandelier, is also furnished with two terracotta-coloured sofas, facing each other on either side of the fireplace, and each decorated with six cushions.

To the right of the fire is the flat screen TV where the Queen – for whom racing was a lifelong passion – would watch the sport during her downtime while resting between engagements.

On show in the Dressing Room, to give a sense of how the Queen would prepare for her official engagements, will be three ensembles from her wardrobe, each worn for a key occasion in Edinburgh.

A purple coat made of a silk-wool blend with a green silk-crepe and lace dress, and a shawl of purple and green Isle of Skye tartan, woven on the Isle of Lewis, was chosen by the Queen for the official opening of the Scottish Parliament on July 1 1999.

It was inspired by the Scottish landscape, reflecting designer Sandra Murray’s interest in her Scottish heritage.

The matching Philip Somerville hat was trimmed with a bow made of the coat’s silk-wool fabric, and also curled dark-green feathers.

Also on display will be a white, pink, gold and cream beaded and sequinned silk gown, embroidered with gold thread and designed by John Anderson, which the Queen wore to a Commonwealth Heads of Government reception held at the palace in 1997.

Each year in late June or early July the Queen would stay at the palace for Holyrood Week and host an annual garden party for 8,000 guests.

A white tweed Karl Ludwig van Rehse coat, highlighted with accents of pink, yellow and green within the weave, and a pink wool crepe day dress which the Queen wore to a garden party in the palace grounds in 2017 will also be seen by visitors.

The rooms are furnished with historic objects from the Royal Collection, and from the Queen and Philip’s personal collections, many of which reflect their longstanding affection for Scotland.

The duke was an enthusiastic collector of contemporary Scottish art and works from his private collection, including pieces by 20th‑century Scottish artists and those demonstrating his “deep appreciation of Scotland’s landscapes and wildlife” will form part of the tour, the Royal Collection said.

Emma Stead, the palace’s curator, said: “Queen Elizabeth II’s well-known love for Scotland will be given fresh context through this unique and special access to the private apartments, where visitors will enjoy a new perspective into both the formal and more informal use of Edinburgh’s royal palace.”

The late Queen, the nation’s longest serving monarch, died at Balmoral in Scotland in September 2022 after reigning for 70 years. The centenary of her birth is on April 21 this year.

Royal Collection Trust email subscribers will be given priority access to book tickets at an offer price of £61 from March 9, with remaining tickets, costing £71 in advance for adults or £75 on the day, going on general sale on March 12.

The tours must be booked in addition to the standard admission ticket to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, costing £22 in advance and £26 on the day.

The Queen Elizabeth II Private Apartment Tours, available only this year, will run daily for 100 days from May 21 to September 10.