The former chief chef aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia, from Wrexham, has reflected on his memories of the queen during his years serving in the Royal Navy.
78-year-old Jeff Hughes was the chief chef on board the Royal Yacht for 16 years as he served in the Royal Navy.
On Monday, September 19, he travelled from North Wales to Edinburgh where the ship is currently mooring.
The Royal Yacht Britannia is now a popular tourist attraction, however it was closed to the public during the day of national mourning for the Queen's funeral.
Shortly before the Queen's funeral began at 11am Mr Hughes recalled his time on board the Queen’s yacht.
He said: “To work in close proximity to the royal family, they made you feel at home, it was their home as well.
“To see them being so relaxed helped us to be relaxed when you came in contact with them.”
The Union flag on the ship was flown at half mast and a lone piper played a lament in the morning.
The former chief continued: “We will never have a monarch like the Queen, although King Charles will do a good job.
“Nobody will do the job like Her Majesty the Queen did. She was a one-off, you will never get that person again.”
The former sailor expected the funeral to be a poignant moment, saying: “To be honest with you, I think I will have a tear and I will be choking back when the Queen is finally laid to rest.”
Mr Hughes received a cherished gift as he finished his last voyage with the yacht, as the royals visited the US and Canada.
He said: “I had a 10 minutes private audience with the royal couple. And that was very special because they asked me all about my time on the yacht, about my family and what I intended to do after I left the yacht.
“And then just I was leaving Her Majesty the Queen said, ‘we’d like to give you this little gift on behalf of myself and Prince Philip’.
“And they gave me a pair of cufflinks.”
He added: “I was lost for words. I didn’t know what to say.
“I just said, ‘thank you sir, thank you ma’am'”.
Mr Hughes said the Queen recognised him when he later received the Royal Victorian medal, saying “nice to see you again, chef”.
He added: “Those are memories I will cherish forever.”
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