Cilla Black ‘defied’ royal protocol in a historic first for The Queen: ‘Needed permission’

Cilla Black became a British icon after dedicating five decades of her life to her career in the entertainment industry. Following her death in 2015, a new ITV documentary has aired which saw her friends and colleagues pay tribute to the veteran television presenter. The programme entitled Cilla: The Lost Tapes showcased some of the greatest highlights and unearthed clips, one of which included a meeting with Queen Elizabeth II in 1970. However, it was a historic meeting as greeting the then-pregnant singer became a first for the monarch and the Royal Family.

Two years after her death, Cilla’s family came across the unearthed clips and footage which had been kept from public knowledge until now.

Amongst the back catalogue of discoveries included the pertinence of the Liverpudlian singer performing for Her Majesty The Queen.

At the time of their meeting, the veteran television presenter was heavily pregnant with her son and first child Robert.

For the documentary, clips of her rendition of Oh Pleasure Man You’ve Done It Again were played over the top of the late star speaking about her historic moment with the monarch.

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Recalling the meeting, a recording of Cilla’s voice said: “I made a bit of history as the Queen never knowingly up until then had been presented to a pregnant woman.

“I was almost dropping so they had to ask permission from the palace and it was an unfortunate song choice as it was ‘oh pleasure man you’ve done it again’.”

In 1970, it would have been a huge move forward for the Royal Family as women were often scared from their jobs for being pregnant, let alone celebrities performing whilst expecting.

Taking to Twitter, viewers were astounded by the revelation the late singer had been part of royal history and seemingly gone against the royal protocol in her heyday.

I made a bit of history

Cilla Black

One wrote: “The Queen had never seen a pregnant woman perform before??? Different times! #Cilla #TheLostTapes.”

However, other’s were in admiration of watching archive footage of Cilla during her 50-year long career in the showbiz industry.

A second posted: “Watching #cillathelosttapes on ITV what a woman. Brilliantly narrated by @Sheridansmith1 #cillablack #cilla #ITV.”

Whilst a third commented: “#thelosttapes #cilla @ITV she will forever be a national treasure, she smashed it from the start.”

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Amongst the throwbacks to the life of a British icon, the documentary also touched on the veteran presenter’s marriage to Bobby Willis.

The singer married her manager in 1969 and the pair shared 30 years of marriage together before his death in 1999 after a short battle with cancer.

Speaking about her husband’s passing, Cilla said: “It took me two years to accept it and I would give my right arm to have him back.

“Life trains you to carry on in front of the cameras, but I was a total wreck after filming [Blind Date].”

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The late star also spoke about her dear friendship with The Beatles band member Ringo Starr, 79, when the pair were younger.

In the documentary, it was revealed the musician had jokingly asked to marry the Liverpudlian superstar before she tied-the-knot with Bobby.

“Ringo Starr was my friend – he even asked me to marry him, well he was desperate actually,” Cilla recalled.

“All the other Beatles had wives and he was the odd one out. I called his bluff and said: ‘Well call the band in 48 hours and I’ll do it’.”

Cilla: The Lost Tapes is now available on ITVHub.

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