There’s always been speculation about what ‘secret signals’ Queen Elizabeth II would use when she was ready to leave an event – but now we seem to have one confirmed.

Her Majesty the Queen died on September 8, aged 96, while surrounded by loved ones at Balmoral Castle, Buckingham Palace confirmed.

Tributes have been pouring in from far and wide, with mourners gathering in their thousands to lay flowers and pay their respects.

Following the death of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, many people who worked closely with her have been sharing their favourite anecdotes, including a former footman.

Ian Scott Hunter worked as a footman for the Queen for eight years, meaning he was able to pick up her little quirks and became familiar with mannerisms the general public might not pick up on.

Speaking on a special episode of Antiques Roadshow onboard the Royal Yacht Britannia, which ‘celebrated the reign and long life of Her Majesty the Queen’, he shared what the Queen would do to signal that she was ready to retire from an occasion.

queen's former footman, ian scott hunter
Her Majesty’s former footman of eight years lifted the lid on a royal secret (Picture: BBC)

The Queen was often spotted with a bright coloured lipstick, which tended to complement her equally vibrant outfits, but there was sometimes a reason for her applying it.

‘I believe there’s etiquette that ladies do not make their faces up in public,’ Hunter began.

‘But, she had her bag over the side and she would take her lipstick out and put it on with no mirror or anything, and that was a signal to the ladies that she was ready to leave.

WINDSOR - MAY 11: Queen Elizabeth II puts on lipstick in the Royal Box at the Windsor Horse Show on May 11, 1985. Prince Phillip was about to enter the dressage ring with his horse team. (Photo by David Levenson/Getty Images)
The late monarch was never seen without a lipstick and now we know why (Picture: Getty)

WINDSOR, UNITED KINGDOM - MAY 15: (EMBARGOED FOR PUBLICATION IN UK NEWSPAPERS UNTIL 24 HOURS AFTER CREATE DATE AND TIME) Queen Elizabeth II attends the 'A Gallop Through History' performance, part of the official celebrations for Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee during the Royal Windsor Horse Show at Home Park, Windsor Castle on May 15, 2022 in Windsor, England. The Royal Windsor Horse Show continued the Platinum Jubilee celebrations with the 'A Gallop Through History' event. Each evening, the Platinum Jubilee celebration saw over 500 horses and 1,000 performers create a 90-minute production that took the audience on a 'gallop through history' from Elizabeth I to the present day. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
Did you ever spot what the Queen’s lipstick signal meant? (Picture: Getty)

‘So, of course, they would all get their bits and bobs together and Her Majesty stands up, so they’re all ready and prepared.’

So, when you look back at photos of Queen Elizabeth applying her lipstick in public, now you know what she might have been thinking!

Another signal the late monarch is thought to have used involved her handbag, something she was rarely seen in public without.

The Queen Visits West Sussex
The Queen died ‘peacefully’ surrounded by her family (Picture: Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)

According to author and royal commentator Kristen Meinzer, who shared this information in Newsweek’s The Royal Report podcast, if the Queen swapped her purse from one arm to the other, she was signalling to her ladies-in-waiting that she wanted someone to come and interrupt the conversation.

Following her death, the Queen’s son immediately became King Charles III with his wife Camilla now Queen Consort.

King Charles was formally declared the new monarch in a televised broadcast on Saturday.

Members of the public watch the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, as it is driven through Edinburgh towards the Palace of Holyroodhouse, on September 11, 2022. - The coffin carrying the body of Queen Elizabeth II left her beloved Balmoral Castle on Sunday, beginning a six-hour journey to the Scottish capital of Edinburgh. (Photo by Ian Forsyth / POOL / AFP) (Photo by IAN FORSYTH/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The Queen’s funeral will be held on September 19, with her coffin currently making its way to her final resting place (Picture: AFP)

King Charles III greets members of the public outside Clarence House, London, after he was formally proclaimed monarch by the Privy Council, and held audiences at Buckingham Palace with political and religious leaders following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday. Picture date: Saturday September 10, 2022. PA Photo. See PA story DEATH Queen. Photo credit should read: James Manning/PA Wire
King Charles III has been greeting royal fans as mourners paid their respects across London (Picture: PA)

It has since been confirmed that the Queen’s funeral service will be held on September 19 at 11am, with the day to become a bank holiday.

Her coffin has now arrived in Edinburgh and will lie in state before travelling to her final resting place in London next week.