Recollections of a Queen’s piper

In 2015 I was lucky enough to become the Queen’s Piper. I played the bagpipes every morning for about 15 minutes under the window of Her Majesty, normally while she was eating breakfast. The Piper to the Sovereign is part of the household so I travelled with Her Majesty to her royal residencies, including Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Balmoral Castle and the Palace of Holyrood house. The appointment also involved welcoming guests and visitors to the households for audiences with foreign and domestic dignitaries such as ambassadors and heads of state – and also British citizens receiving OBEs or CBEs and so on.

For these occasions my role consisted mainly of informing them of the general etiquette and expectations while in Her Majesty’s presence. The position was created in 1843 by Queen Victoria, who so enjoyed the sound of daily bagpipes while she holidayed in Taymouth Castle that she decided to appoint her own personal piper.

I was Piper to the Sovereign for four years and I have fond memories of that time. The Queen was not only disarmingly quick-witted and someone who liked to joke, but she was also caring and devoted to her staff. Working alongside her I was able to get to know her sense of humour and the ease with which she spoke to everyone. On my first day in post when I was feeling a little nervous, Her Majesty asked me if I was settling in. I responded that I was getting lost in the Palace and she laughed and said that she used to get lost with Princess Margaret all the time when they were children. She once joked that I was the first piper to hold the post whom she didn’t have to look up to – a jibe at my 5ft 6in height.

Her jokes continued throughout my appointment. One very windy morning, while I was playing the bagpipes at Windsor Castle, my kilt was blown up and, being a ‘true Scotsman’, I was briefly exposed. On returning to the Castle, thinking I had played well and had avoided embarrassment, I was met by one of the Queen’s closest aides, who had been with her as I’d played. He asked for a quick word. When we went into the Equerry’s Office, he informed me that never in the history of the monarchy had two ‘queens’ been so disappointed in one day. Later, while I was escorting Her Majesty, she asked me if it had been a particularly cold morning.

I was always asked whether the Queen enjoyed music and specifically the sound of the bagpipes. I will say that she always showed a great interest in the tunes I played each morning. She once asked me what tune I had played second or perhaps third, and I struggled to answer because I couldn’t remember the order in which I had played that morning. She then sang the beginning of the tune: ‘Aunty Mary had a canary…’ I began to continue the lyrics – ‘up the leg of her drawers’ – but she laughed and shouted ‘No, no, no!’ before I could finish, which was probably for the best.

I often witnessed how the Queen cared about others more than ceremony. Once, following the state opening of parliament, I was leading Her Majesty and the Master of the Household back to her private apartments. Another member of staff seemed intent on greeting me in the long corridor and he had somehow completely missed the fact that the Queen, in immaculate full state dress and accompanied by the fully uniformed Vice Admiral, was a mere few steps behind. I quickly but firmly pushed him through a doorway and closed the door without missing a beat. I thought I had handled the situation. The Queen, however, asked me with concern if the person was all right. She was not worried that etiquette had been compromised.

I left my appointment in 2019 for family reasons. I am honoured and proud to have not only served Her Majesty through my military career in the Regiment but to have personally served in the household.