Royal residence Windsor

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Windsor Castle is said to be the Queen's favourite residence

It’s where her family decamped to during the Blitz and, despite the shadow of war, she spent many of her carefree early years. So, Her Majesty will be delighted that the 1, 000-year-old fortress is to get a £27 million facelift.

It’s the biggest raft of improvements since repairs were ordered after fire ravaged the castle in 1992 and will make Windsor more tourist-friendly. Included are a new underground café, the reinstatement of the Georgian entrance hall and a visitor centre.

Work is due to begin early next year and will be completed by the end of 2018. It’s expected that the changes, also allowing public access to the ground floor of the State Apartments, will swell the number of visitors who flock to the 11th century castle to over 1.5 million a year.

Windsor is both the oldest and largest continuously inhabited castle in the world, boasting about 1, 000 rooms, 150 staff and standing in 13 glorious acres. The Queen spends most of her weekends there, also choosing Windsor to host many important state banquets. The Windsor Castle dining table can accommodate 160 people.

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The Queen holds many important state banquets and functions at Windsor

Twice a year, at Easter and during the Royal Ascot race meeting, it’s her official residence and as Elizabeth approaches her 90th birthday later this month plans are afoot for her to spend even more time at Windsor. Fittingly, events to mark the occasion will be focused on Windsor and on her birthday, April 21, she will greet crowds outside the castle.

The Queen’s fondness for the castle can be traced back to the 1940s. During much of the Second World War the Royal Family lived in reinforced rooms at Windsor, which was considered safer than Buckingham Palace.

It became an annual Christmas tradition for the young princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret, to stage a pantomime. The first was Cinderella, in 1941, starring 15-year-old Elizabeth as Prince Florizel and Margaret in the title role.

The events, in front of a privileged private audience in the castle’s Waterloo Chamber, became a highlight of the calendar. Photographs from the era show our future Queen throwing herself enthusiastically into the roles.

The young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret performed pantomimes at Windsor every Christmas During a performance of Aladdin, a young Prince Philip was spellbound by the future Queen

During a performance of Aladdin in 1943 one of the guests appeared to be captivated by Elizabeth’s legs, while aides noted that she had never been so animated. The young man watching spellbound was her future husband, Prince Philip of Greece.