The Rare Moments When Queen Elizabeth Allowed Herself to Be “A Normal Woman in the Countryside”

Many authors and commentators over the years have mused that Queen Elizabeth II might have lived a much different life if she hadn't been born into the Royal Family. As a lifelong equestrian and someone who felt most at home taking a walk through the misty grounds of Balmoral, she "would've made a good farmer's wife," as her longtime groom, Terry Pendry, remarked on the Rosebud Podcast.

When picturing The Queen with her headscarf and Barbour jacket you can't resist but imagine her hopping into one of her trusty Land Rovers, and this week, a selection of vehicles from Queen Elizabeth's fleet are on display in NYC's Rockefeller Center. The exhibit, which runs through Sunday, Oct. 20, offers a unique peek at the lifestyle that the late monarch loved so much.

Mike Bishop, Chief Historian at Jaguar Land Rover North America, tells Marie Claire that he once got a glimpse at a very "normal" Queen Elizabeth when she was off-duty.

"A few years ago, I attended the Royal Windsor Horse Show. Very early in the morning, a colleague and I met to see the pony displays, and we saw The Queen drive up in her 2009 Range Rover," Bishop says.

Explaining that this was "before she had gotten ready for the day’s festivities," Bishop says Queen Elizabeth "just looked completely at home, like a normal woman in the countryside."

Of the casual Queen, Bishop says, "Horseback riding and tending to them was her lifelong hobby, and it seemed like she wanted to get away early to spend some time with the ponies before the day got started."

The vehicle expert watched Queen Elizabeth climb "back into her Range Rover with a few members of her team," sharing that, "Just from watching her pull away, it was clear she had a love of driving and was very confident behind the wheel."

Bishop was so impressed by her skills, in fact, he tells Marie Claire that Queen Elizabeth "had the same poise and mannerisms as a professional driver."

This account is in line with Queen Elizabeth's former assistant private secretary, Samantha Cohen, who recently told the Sunday Times that The Queen was a "gutsy" driver. "She would drive her cars fast around Balmoral," Cohen added.

Some of the late monarch's vehicles included very on-brand features such as customization for her dogs, and in the case of The Queen's 2009 Range Rover, there's even "a handbag holder," the historian reveals.

As for her state review vehicles (picture the times when Queen Elizabeth stood and waved from an open-topped car), Bishop says they "had a resting platform built in that was designed and tailored to Her Majesty’s height and shoe height, allowing her to appear standing while actually having a place to sit or lean."

The historian adds that Elizabeth's cars and her love of driving were very much a part of who The Queen was, especially as someone who served her country in World War II.

He praises The Queen as someone who "dedicated her life to service and was the first female member of the Royal Family to volunteer for military duty," adding that Queen Elizabeth's "specialty was driving and servicing military and rescue vehicles" during the war.

"It is said that this time sparked her love of driving and the mechanical aspects of vehicles, which lasted a lifetime," Bishop tells Marie Claire.

The Vehicles of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, produced by Interluxe Group, is on display in New York's Rockefeller Center through Oct. 20. The exhibit will move to The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles from Nov. 15 to Nov. 16, followed by a stop at Destination Defender in Malibu, Calif. from Nov. 22-24.