Royal works of art! The Queen and Princess Margaret’s childhood drawings sell for £11,000 at auction

The Queen and Princess Margaret’s heartwarming childhood drawings have sold for over £11,000 at auction.   

In 1938, the sisters – who were aged 12 and eight – were handed a piece of Buckingham Palace headed paper to keep them entertained while waiting for a dentist appointment. 

The sisters were both booked in to see royal dentist Alan Aldred at his practice in Park Street, London.

While waiting for their check-up, Elizabeth and Margaret drew almost 20 houses, chairs and dressing tables on both sides of the sheet of paper.

Following their appointments, the royal pair left their drawings with Mr Aldred – who held onto them for decades.

While waiting for their dentist  check-up, Elizabeth and Margaret drew almost 20 houses, chairs and dressing tables

He then passed them on to his son Ian Aldred, who sent the late Queen photocopies of the drawings in 2004.

After receiving them, the Queen asked her private secretary to respond to Ian’s letter with a personal message.

It read: ‘Her Majesty was most grateful to you for sending her this photocopy which certainly brought back memories for her.’

Earlier this week, Mr Aldred sold the drawings and his letter from the Queen with Cheffins Auctions in Cambridge.

The drawings were purchased by a UK-based telephone bidder who paid £11,646 including fees – which was almost eight times more than the £1,500 pre-sale estimate.

Mr Aldred, now in his 80s, said he wanted to give someone else the chance to cherish the piece of history.

He said: ‘I was conscious from a very young age that my father was more than just a normal dentist and he had some very famous clients.

‘As a schoolboy I was very proud that he was the dentist to the Royal Family.

The drawings were purchased by a UK-based telephone bidder who paid £11,646 including fees

Royal dentist Alan Aldred passed the drawings down to his son Ian – who has now sold them for over £11,000

‘We are delighted with the result which far exceeded our expectations.

‘My family will be incredibly happy with the overall result, and we are glad that the drawings will be going to a collector who can enjoy them.’

Charles Ashton, head of the Fine Art Division at Cheffins, said: ‘These charming drawings offered a window into the childhood lives of the late Her Majesty the Queen and Princess Margaret, who would have been aged around twelve and eight at the time.

‘The result achieved goes to show the enduring popularity of her late Majesty, and the continued support for the Royal Family from the British public.

‘We saw significant competition on sale day and were delighted to have the opportunity to offer these previously unseen drawings to the market.

‘With the Coronation approaching, we have seen that the popularity of any items relating to the late Queen have risen significantly, as people look to collect individual and personalised items that have a strong link to one of United Kingdom’s greatest monarchs.’