Doggies in Pearls on Cover of Country Life

After the sad news that one of Her Majesty The Queen's beloved Jack Russells died at the weekend, today's special edition of the Dawn Chorus looks back at the day that Beth and Bluebell took over Country Life magazine's famous Frontispiece page to become the first ever canine Girls in Pearls.

Beth and Bluebell’s Country Life photoshoot
‘Hello, I’m from Country Life — could you let me know where to park please?’ called out our Picture Editor Lucy Ford after pulling into the driveway at Raymill, Her Majesty The Queen’s country home, back in 2022. Lucy was there with Managing Editor Paula Lester and photographer Anya Campbell, and had spotted someone doing bit of planting in one of the flowerbeds.

The ‘gardener’ turned out to be the future Queen, who turned around with a smile and pointed Lucy in the right direction. And once our team were settled in, the then-Duchess of Cornwall offered teas, coffees and pains-au-chocolat for breakfast ahead of the photoshoot with her dogs, Beth and Bluebell.

Her Majesty had kindly agreed to guest edit the magazine to coincide with her 75th birthday in July 2022, and in a move that chimes exactly with her wit and sense of humour, had asked if her beloved Jack Russells, both adopted from Battersea, could be the stars of the Frontispiece page.

Wearing pearls, naturally.

There hadn’t been a four-legged Frontispiece since one of the Aga Khan’s racehorses in 1935, but we were more than happy to oblige — and that led to the fun of trying to get two cheeky, funny and delightful Jack Russells to sit in the same place, at the same time, and posing for the camera.

SOURCE: https://www.countrylife.co.uk/out-and-about/dogs/what-happened-when-country-life-put-the-queens-jack-russells-on-the-girls-with-pearls-page-276086