1. The Queen’s Speech is the less formal name for what is officially called Her Majesty’s Most Gracious Speech or the Gracious Address.

2. The Queen, or reigning monarch, does not need to give the speech and may appoint a delegate to perform the task. Queen Elizabeth II did this in 1959 and 1963 when she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and Prince Edward respectively. The Lord Chancellor delivered the speech in her place.

3. Monarchs have appeared at state openings of Parliament, on and off, since at least 1536. However, the current ceremony dates from the opening of the rebuilt Palace of Westminster in 1852 after the fire of 1834.

4. At 10am on the morning of the Queen’s Speech the Yeoman of the Guard will check out the cellars for gunpowder or other explosive matters in a tradition that dates back to 1605 when Robert Catesby, Guy Fawkes and other Catholics smuggled in 36 barrels of gunpowder to blow up the Commons.

5. This is the 56th time the Queen’s has opened Parliament.

6. Queen Victoria refused to turn up to state openings for years after her consort, Prince Albert died, and when eventually she did, she would listen while the Lord Chancellor read the speech.

7. It was Edward VII who had the ceremony redesigned, rearranging the throne area so that the royal couple could sit side by side.

8. Tony Blair introduced a number of changes to the ceremony in 1997. The Lord Chancellor was to no longer walk backwards down the stairs so as not to turn his back on the Queen and the Silver Stick in Waiting is no longer part of the show.

9. The Queen’s Speech has been boycotted by a number of left wing MPs in the past, including Neil Kinnock and Denis Skinner in 1977.

10.A government whip is held “hostage” at the Palace to ensure the Queen’s safe return, a custom dating back to when the monarch and Parliament did not get on.