"There was that twinkle in the eye...": Past Prime Ministers give rare glimpse into the real woman behind the crown

She had a warm sense of familiarity that may be impossible to replicate, but few people rarely knew what it was like to be with Queen Elizabeth II one on one.

The UK's longest reigning monarch died peacefully at Balmoral on Thursday afternoon, aged 96, prompting an outpouring of love and grief from people across the globe.

She was adored by so many, but so few ever had the privilege of knowing her like the country's past Prime Ministers - who caught a rare glimpse into the real woman behind the crown.

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As eloquently said by former Conservative Prime Minister, John Major: "The one thing about the meetings with the Queen is that nobody's there, just corgis behaving or not as the case maybe, but usually behaving.

"You can speak in absolute privacy, there's no private secretary there, no notes were made. You can say exactly what you wish, exactly what is on your mind and so can the Queen."

Serving two decades later, former Prime Minister Theresa May paid a touching tribute to Her Majesty, as she spoke of a woman full of wisdom and an 'acute judge of people.'

"She was able often to give those little, if you like, pen portraits of people that she knew, that she'd met," Ms May said speaking on BBC Radio 4's programme.

As the country enters a period of mourning for Queen Elizabeth II, this is what every living Prime Minister who served Her Majesty said in tribute.

Former Conservative Prime Minister Sir John Major was the Queen's ninth Prime Minister - serving between 1990 and 1992.

Paying tribute, Mr Major said: "In her public duties she was selfless and wise, with a wonderful generosity of spirit. That is how she lived – and how she led. For