Margaret Tyler’s north London home is filled with the faces of the Queen, Prince Charles, and Diana.
“I’m known as Britain’s loyalist royalist,” Tyler said. “That’s what I’ve been dubbed.”
Royal-watchers from around the world are converging in London this week to participate in birthday celebrations for the Queen, who at 90, is Britain’s longest-serving monarch.
Tyler plans to be part of the festivities outside the Buckingham Palace this weekend, but in her home, every day is a celebration of the Royal Family.
Tyler has amassed more than 10,000 items, including photos, plates, mugs and miniatures that feature members of the Royal Family.
She is possibly Britain’s largest collector of royal memorabilia. The Guinness Book of Records has asked her to start counting her items to find out for certain.
“I’ve got about 1,500 books on the Royal Family,” Tyler said. “I have magazines every week.”
Tyler was 8 at the time of the Queen’s coronation in 1953. She has admired the Royal Family since childhood, but didn’t catch the collecting bug until a young aristocrat named Diana Spencer, or the Princess of Wales, came into the picture.
Tyler has dedicated one room of her house to all the items she has collected on the late princess. She keeps many of her Queen collectibles in the “Jubilee Room.”
“I’ve also got a bedroom upstairs, which is a royal bedroom as well, so really, it’s five rooms,” Tyler said with a laugh.
Her dedication to the Royal Family has not gone unnoticed. Tyler is front and centre at many royal events and she has met the Queen three times.
“It was fantastic, I loved it,” Tyler said. “And I love sharing it with people because I think the Royal Family is wonderful.”
She’s unsure where she’s going to keep her collection, but says it will expand as the Royal Family does.
She points out that Prince Harry, considered one of the most eligible bachelors in the world, has a possible wedding in his future. Harry has been romantically linked to various women in recent years, and reports out of the U.K. suggest the prince is currently dating British singer Ellie Goulding.
In the meantime, Tyler said she will be at Buckingham Palace this weekend, where crowds are expected to see baby Princess Charlotte on the balcony with her family for the first time.
With a report from CTV’s Jill Macyshon in London, England
