The first salary (when he was 10). The first marriage (with his high school teacher). The friends, the enemies, the obsessions (for the consistency of the puree). And that ironic phrase with which she refers to her previous life ...

Letizia Ortiz, portrait of a queen in 100 photos Photo Video

On September 15th Letizia Ortiz turns 50. She has been in the spotlight, before her with great difficulty and now infinite naturalness, since November 1, 2003, when the Royal House announced her engagement with the Prince of Asturias, Felipe di Borbone. Below, fifty things you may not know about her. - Photo | video

Letizia Ortiz, star among the stars in Mallorca with a dress for only 23 euros! - guard

1) She is the first royal bloodless sovereign of the Spanish Monarchy.

two) Not only does he have no royal blood, but he comes from a progressive and republican family. She is the daughter of a journalist and a nurse. Her grandfather was a taxi driver.

3) At the beginning he suffered from every relief, all criticism. She was helped by her mother-in-law Sofia, who used to repeat: 'The royals do not defend themselves: we have to bite the bullet, receive, greet, smile, say' how's it going 'as if nothing had happened'.

4) In 18 years as a 'royal' (of which 10 as a princess of Asturias and 8 as a queen), she skipped a single week of work: last July, when she caught Covid. It must be said, however, that the Bourbons' holidays are quite substantial: almost a month, to be spent on the island of Majorca.

5) In spite of (credible) rumors that she would have undergone several tweaks, she admits only one cosmetic surgery: a rhinoplasty, and 'for health reasons'.

Letizia Ortiz on the hunt for sales in short shorts. And Leonor and Sofia 'aim' (in height) dad Felipe - guard

6) He hates heels. Also because she suffers from chronic metatarsalgia (if she were not a queen we would be more hasty and we would say: foot pain). She wears the 37, for some models the 36.

7) He earns € 142,202 per year. Gross of taxes. The king takes almost double: € 258,927.

8) He has always had a great personality. During the speech for the 50th anniversary of his faculty (Journalism, at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid), he released the following anecdote: “Once a professor. I give the bright ones, in the middle of her lesson he said to me, almost shouting: 'Ortiz, look at Ortiz, I don't know what will become of her, but certainly no one beats her as a pain in the ass.'

9) Speaking of personality, there are not a few times in which he contradicted Prince Felipe. The first time was on November 6, 2003, during the marriage proposal (the official engagement, which was broadcast on TV). When the two engaged couples were asked how many children they thought they had. Felipe replied: 'More than two, less than five'. Letizia's reply is immediate, almost ferocious: “Imagine! Five really no '. But the most famous phrase, during the marriage proposal , was another (you can find it in point 39).

Letizia Ortiz, what did you do to the face? That expression hides a secret - guard

10) He cordially detests all the hobbies of royal families, and of the Spanish one in particular: he does not ski, he deserts all regattas, he is against hunting.

eleven) He has absolute control over his daughters. When, after the usual posed photo of the Mallorcan summer, the youngest daughter Sofia continued to greet everyone with an obsessive and monotonous 'Good afternoon, good afternoon, good afternoon', he struck her with these words: 'Sofi, my daughter, you look like a robot! '.

12) On 27 October, he made his first official solo trip abroad. In Vienna, for the inauguration of an exhibition by Velasquez.

13) He met Felipe at a dinner at the home of the journalist Pedro Erquicia. She had gone there as a La 1 reporter. Love at first sight was immediate. For some Spanish newspapers it was one locks up , an arranged appointment (certainly without the knowledge of the future king). For others it was destiny (see next point).

14) Yes, because to that dinner, organized to talk about the war in Iraq, Letizia shouldn't have gone. She went there as a substitute for a guest who forfeited almost the last one. The chemistry with Felipe was instant. And the best joke, even if a little snobbish, was made by the future king (see next point).

fifteen) Both, at the time, had just renovated their apartment. When he learned that Letizia's was 80 square meters, he told her: “We could carry it to my bedroom, so we can make it smaller”.

16) She has a predilection for low-cost clothes and Spanish brands. She dressed Valentino, who is strong in the other monarchies, only once: last January, a 1977 dress that belonged to her mother-in-law Sofia.

Letizia Ortiz and her mother-in-law Sofia of Spain, peace between queens. Signed right on the site of the “brawl

17) It was hard for Felipe to win it. The first appointment 'cost' the future king four phone calls. But this is nothing (see next point).

18) Because after asking for her hand - inside a car, a blue Audi which was then also used to go to Princess Leonor's baptism - Felipe had to wait three weeks for an answer. The decision came on September 15, Letizia's birthday. That she hosted the news of La 1 and ran to say “S I want it ”(Yes, I do) to Felipe.

19) The last news program of his life brought him on October 31, 2003. In the end, he only said: 'See you on Monday'. And he didn't take her things. The next day, at 7.30 pm, the news of the engagement was given.

twenty) Since Felipe became king, Letizia has given 199 speeches.

twenty-one) The one with Felipe is her second marriage: she was married, in a civil ceremony and for a year, with Alonso Guerrero Pérez, who had been her literature teacher in high school, the Instituto Ramiro de Maeztu in Madrid. They spent their honeymoon in Cuba. To find out why they divorced, go to point 36.

22) At the wedding with Felipe, the happiest were Letizia's maternal grandparents. Enriqueta, for having arrived alive (her biggest fear of her was missing her niece's wedding, since she was 83 when Felipe and Letizia got engaged). Her husband of her Paco her for the dances: she did not miss one of her.

23) Masterfully handles the four 'r' of 'ethical fashion': reuse, recycle, recover, reduce.

24) Next to the bedroom, Felipe had her build and furnish a walk-in closet - a walk-in, so to speak - identical to his. It is divided into two parts: in one area there are clothes for 'work', in the other those for staying at home or going out with friends. The gala dresses are in a separate room, with all the accessories sorted by color, rank and preferences of the queen.

Letizia Ortiz conquers everyone with a recycled look for less than 200 euros - guard

25) Before getting engaged to Felipe and moving to Zarzuela, he lived in Valdebernardo, southeast of Madrid, bought with a mortgage.

26) Her wedding dress was signed by Maneul Pertegaz. In choosing her, she was helped by her mother-in-law Sofia.

27) He always hated two things about himself: the nose and the chin.

28) Asian blood flows in her veins: her maternal great-grandfather, grandmother Enriqueta's father, was Filipino.

29) When she was little, after school she went to visit her paternal grandmother, Menchu ​​Alvarez del Valle, a famous radio journalist. She at 10 she debuted on the radio and earned her first salary.

30) As a young girl (and as a girl) she spent her holidays in Ribadasella, on the Santa Marina beach, in Asturias.

31) She graduated in Journalism in 1995. She did internships in newspapers ABC (conservative and pro-monarchical newspaper) e The New Spain (from Oviedo, which is his home).

32) He writes all his speeches. And she checks (and corrects) her husband's too.

33) The waitress did it in a fast food restaurant (which the Spaniards, allergic to Angles, still call the quick comida).

3. 4) As a girl, she spent a long time in Mexico. She where she also sold cigarettes (Chesterfield brand). She loved dancing salsa in the Salon Veracruz, Guadalajara, and she broke more than one heart : a Mexican businessman asked her in marriage, an Arab prince declared himself. But in Madrid she was waiting for Alonso (see point 21).

Letizia Ortiz with her daughters Leonor and Sofia, bright colors in honor of San Giacomo (in Compostela) - guard

35) Before coming to public television (TVE), he worked for Bloomberg and CNN.

36) The marriage with Alonso Guerrero Pérez ended because Letizia was too focused on work. When Alonso asked her to choose between him and TV, the future queen had no doubts better than the second one.

37) And Letizia did not take long to shine on TV: in January 2001 (when she was already at TVE), she won the Larra award as best journalist under 30.

38) In his first years as a journalist, and after his divorce, he lived with his mother in the Moratalaz neighborhood.

39) The phrase for which Letizia is still famous is the ' let me finish ', That is, let me finish, with which she struck Felipe, who had interrupted her while he was declaring to the nation that due to the engagement he would end his television career.

40) He has a bad relationship with one of his two sisters-in-law, Infanta Cristina. And this from before Cristina and her husband Iñaki Urdangarin were overwhelmed by allegations of corruption (the infamous Nóos case). In fact, there is a video from 2010 in which Letizia is seen hugging and greeting the Infanta Elena with great affection and completely ignoring Cristina.

Letizia Ortiz returns after Covid: casual chic in blue, but she never takes off her mask - guard

41) Speaking of bad relationships: the one with the famous royal expert journalist Jaime Peñafiel, who is now 90 years old, is turbulent. Peñafiel said that Letizia confronted him by pointing the finger at him: “Look me in the eyes! I'm sad, do I look sad to you? Why do you write it? '.

42) Not even the chefs of Palazzo Marivent, il must love it too much good retreat Majorcan of the Spanish royals. It is said that, especially when Leonor and Sofia were little, Letizia went down to the kitchens to check the consistency of the puree intended for her daughters.

43) Her parents, Jesus Ortiz and Pamela Rocasolano, separated four days after Letizia's first marriage.

44) According to label experts, Letizia made only one big mistake in public: the famous clash with her mother-in-law Sofia, in Easter 2018 ( video ).

Four. Five) She is very close to her mother Pamela, a bond that became very close after the suicide of Letizia's sister, Erika (in 2007). Pamela has a wonderful relationship with her son-in-law Felipe: the two have gone to the cinema several times together with Leonor and Sofia.

46) Among the crowned 'colleagues', she has two friends: Rania of Jordan and Maxima of Holland. She cannot bear, reciprocated, Marie Chantal of Greece. However, her closest friendships are with former journalist colleagues. Among them, Mar Peiteado and Sonsoles Onega stand out.

47) When the occasion is crucial, wear white: during the marriage proposal (in Armani), at the wedding, for the first official portrait (2005), for the proclamation of King Felipe. But his favorite color is red. Among the queens, however, she is the one who spends the least on clothes.

Letizia Ortiz shines in a dreamy silver dress. And she breaks the protocol - guard

48) Since 2018 it does not hide or dye white hair.

49) She loves cooking, especially with her two daughters. In Zarzuela there is a garden that you take care of yourself: you have banned the use of pesticides and chemical additives. She is very attentive to nutrition: she combines the Mediterranean diet with Nicholas Perricone's anti-inflammatory diet. She doesn't touch alcohol, nor fried food, nor sweets. An exception is only for potato croquettes and i torreznos , some strips of fried bacon typical of Soria.

fifty) He refers to his previous life with great sense of humor : “When I was a person…”.

Source: oggi.it