Her Majesty's Parker 51

[mliptrot]

Having just watched Andrew Marr's documentary about the Queen, I noticed a rather smart Parker 51 that she was using when going through her 'red box'.

 

Seemed to be a burgundy with gold cap; correct me if I'm wrong please!

 

Mark

 

P.S. I'm always on the lookout for the pens seen in films and TV shows - seen any interesting examples recently?

[The Royal Pen]

Only the best for the best! Interesting you should notice this, now, did you happen to see what ink colour it has?

[Florida Blue]

In an older thread, Henry Simpole confirmed that the Queen uses a burgundy P51 with a gold filled cap so that does sound like her pen.

[OcalaFlGuy]

But is it a Newhaven pen or a Janesville pen?

 

:hmm1:

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[mmahany]

It wouldn't happen to be a burgundy/gold DEMI would it? If so, that was my first fountain pen I ever bought. That would make it even cooler to have now too.

[Beechwood]

Newhaven pen, should be Royal Blue ink but probably not

Edited February 8, 2012 by Arthur

[zal]

i read that she has been using it for decades. a member here wrote to the palace requesting information on her pen but was declined. any idea whether she has been using the same pen all these years or she changes the pen once in a while as we do? i am intrigued thinking her majesty using the exact same pen for decades, i dont think it is possible.

 

long live the queen.

 

rgds.

 

krishna.

[Beechwood]

There is a letter on the Conway Stewart website, perhaps going back awhile, where she was offered a CS pen and accepted saying that she would prefer a simple and plain looking pen rather than something flashy - my word.

[OcalaFlGuy]

Is there someone in the UK who can go here, watch it in HD and do a screen capture/Win7 snip of the pen on her desk?

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01bzw4b/The_Diamond_Queen_Episode_1/

 

I tried but they block to the U.S.

 

I even tried a proxy IP from the UK and struck out there too. (I sure thought I was on the right track there though...)

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[Beechwood]

Hmm, playing away

[OcalaFlGuy]

No, no, no. The 51 man, the 51!

 

(It looks like a bird crashed into HM hat.)

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[pajaro]

No, no, no. The 51 man, the 51!

 

(It looks like a bird crashed into HM hat.)

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

 

Ah, but HM has an elegant flair. Always looks lovely.

 

Pen looks like a Mohhhhnblahhhhh, pest pronounced holding your nose...well...

[ANM]

In that picture, if she is signing a register at a place she is visiting, it might be the pen provided for her to use for the occasion and not a personal pen.

[tmenyc]

Just curious, from this royalty-ignorant New Yorker, when HM signs her name, what does she actually write? What is her surname?

 

Tim

[Mike 59]

Hi all, I tried a screen capture, but it's not too clear. I would say it's a burgundy colour 51 with a gold clip. I'm not too sure if I can post the screen capture without breaking copyright.

Edited February 8, 2012 by Mike 59

[pen2paper]

That looks just like my 51... !

in the last picture, that is...

earlier, uncapped when writing, there is a gold band at the end. so then, is this a vacumatic?

[XV107]

Just curious, from this royalty-ignorant New Yorker, when HM signs her name, what does she actually write? What is her surname?

 

Tim

 

Elizabeth R (R for 'regina'). The monarch always signs with their regnal name plus the letter 'R' ('Rex' for a king); I say regnal name since some monarchs don't use their given name when the come to the throne (e.g. King George VI was actually named Albert, but chose to be known as King George in tribute to his father, George V).

 

The royal family surname was Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, but George V changed it in 1917 to Windsor - on the grounds that having a rather Germanic surname wasn't necessarily the best thing for the British head of sate during World War 1. The Queen's surname is Windsor, although the way in which various members of the royal family style themselves differs. It gets quite complicated and I can never quite remember how it works, since it isn't integral to the course on British politics that I used to teach.

[tmenyc]

Well, I got the drift, thanks! Fascinating, actually...I did actually wonder where Windsor came from, knowing some of the history.

 

Tim

[Florida Blue]

Just curious, from this royalty-ignorant New Yorker, when HM signs her name, what does she actually write? What is her surname?

 

Tim

 

Never mind, already answered.

Edited February 9, 2012 by Florida Blue

[wekiva98]

I've watched a bunch of TV shows about the Queen over the years -- some of them featuring film from as far back as the 1950s -- and my memory is that I saw her using several different 51s at various times. One definitely was gold or gold-filled, but another appeared to be a simple light-colored pen with a plain steel cap. There's also a photo of her -- pre-coronation, I think -- in which she signs a book in Canada with a Vacumatic. I wouldn't be surprised if Parker kept the royals well stocked with pens in those days.