Photograph showing HM The Queen standing alongside her horse called 'Magna Carta' after winning the Ascot Stakes. A man wearing a triby holds the horse in the foreground with his back to the viewer. Another woman stands behind him and another man stands behind the horse to left.

One of The Queen’s passions is horse racing, and among the highlights of the racing calendar is the Royal Ascot race meeting in June. The Queen first went to Ascot in 1945 (wearing her ATS uniform), and has attended every year since. She traditionally arrives at the course in an open landau, accompanied by members of her family and friends. The Queen’s horses have won races at Royal Ascot on a number of occasions; in 1957 The Queen had four winners during Ascot week. Her most recent Ascot winner was in 1999, when Blueprint won The Duke of Edinburgh Stakes.