The Daily Mail's gossip columnist, Richard Eden, has revealed the name of Queen Elizabeth II's official biographer.
King Charles II has selected Anna Keay as his mother's official biographer, according to Eden, who learned the writer's name at the launch party for Robert Hardman's Elizabeth II: In Private. In Public. The Inside Story, held at the iconic Hatchards bookstore on Piccadilly.
Eden noted that the King "wanted the commission to go to a woman." Charles knows Kealy and trusts her "to do a thorough job." She will have full access to the late queen's private papers.
This has not been confirmed by an official announcement from Buckingham Palace.
Dr. Keay, 51, is the Director of the Landmark Trust, an organization that restores historic buildings. The King is the Trust's patron. She is also a trustee of the Royal Collection Trust.
She earned a degree in history from Magdalene College, Oxford, and a Ph.D from Queen Mary, University of London. Her dissertation, The Ceremonies of Charles II's Court, which inspired her book, The Magnificent Monarch: Charles II and the Ceremonies of Power.
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After working for seven years as Assistant Curator of the Historic Royal Palace, Dr. Keay was hired in 2002 by English Heritage, where she remained for ten years. In 2012, she was named Director of the Landmark Trust.
She is married to Simon Hurley, an architectural historian. They met at English Heritage, where he was Executive Director from 2002 through 2015. He currently serves as the Chair of the National Heritage Lottery Fund. The couple has twin children, Arthur and Maude.
Dr. Keay is a scholarly historian and biographer. Her books include:
The Last Royal Rebel: The Life and Death of James, Duke of Monmouth
Crown Jewels: The Official Illustrated History
The Magnificent Monarch: Charles II and the Ceremonies of Power
Here is the link to the original Daily Mail article.
