In four days times Queen Elizabeth II will be the longest reigning British monarch. RUSSELL LEADBETTER looks at the 1970 s and Silver Jubilee fever.

IF the Queen had one ambition for her Silver Jubilee plans in 1977, it was to meet as many of her subjects as possible.

She certainly got her wish when she arrived in Glasgow on the 17th day of May.

It wasn't just the fact that she and the Duke of Edinburgh turned their walkabout into a leisurely talkabout - it was the fact that so many ordinary Glaswegians were left with happy memories after meeting the Queen.

One Govan couple, Mary and Albert Currie, of Napier Terrace, had been scheduled to meet the Queen.

They and their three children were waiting at the door when the Queen and the Duke, flanked by royal officials, arrived.

On the living-room table was a pot of tea, a plate of salmon sandwiches and bone china that had been bought especially for the occasion.

Alas. though the Curries were able to show the Queen round their home, she did not have time to stay for a cuppa.

"She really didn't have the time," Mrs Currie told reporters. "They were very nice and warm people."

The Queen and the Duke had arrived the previous day at Platform 11 at flag-bedecked Central Station and, outside, clambered onto the horse-drawn Scottish State Coach, ahead of a Jubilee procession formed by the Household Cavalry.

Their first port of call was Glasgow Cathedral, followed by George Square.

"The couple," said the Evening Times, "were three minutes late in arriving at George Square, but everyone knew they were on their way as more than 6,000 people flooded down George Street to get to the square before the procession and get a second look at the Jubilee Queen."

The crowd in the square swelled to 60,000 in scenes reminiscent of the Queen's Coronation visit here in 1953.

The Queen chatted with wellwishers. She asked one 72-year-old man from Cardonald if he lived in the city. He told her he lived on the outskirts and that "not many people lived in the centre of the city nowadays."

Two friends, one from Newton Mearns and the other from Giffnock, told the Queen they had been waiting since 9am - and that the wait had been worth it.

John Sherry, a 12-year-old from Wishaw, had waited for the Queen, clutching a camera.

She asked him if he had managed to get a photograph of her and when he said he hadn't, the monarch obligingly posed for a few close-up shots.

John said afterwards: "It was the most important photograph I have ever taken, and it was really wonderful to have the Queen posing for me.

"I got some photographs of her on my stills camera and I also got a reel of cine film."

Nearby, a girl of 15, from Queenslie, took a photo of the Duke on her instant camera. He waited for the picture to develop - and when she showed it to him, he replied, "That's beautiful."

Later that day, the royals went to Hampden Park (again, as they had done in 1953) then to the Kelvingrove galleries.

There, Prince Philip met some cleaners, who had put in two hours' overtime to make sure the place was looking its best.

As he passed them, he ran his finger along a chair and told them: "You have got it clean!"

That night, the royals took in a Royal Variety Show at the King's Theatre, where the stars included Frankie Howerd and Dolly Parton.

Their schedule the following day saw the couple visit Govan - and the Currie household - before departing for Cumbernauld then Stirling.

It was just part of a hectic Jubilee visit that would take the Queen all over Scotland.

The Evening Times spoke to one Glasgow woman who had not only seen the Queen on her latest visit but had also seen her 25 years earlier, at Hampden Park.

Back in 1953 she had been a young Girl Guide, one of thousands of youngsters chosen to greet the newly-crowned Queen.

"This takes me back all those years," said the lady, whose name was Margaret. "When she passed by I was within arm's length of the Queen and I must confess to being as excited as I was when I was only a child."

She spoke for many Glaswegians when she added: "I have always made a point of seeing the Queen when she was in this part of the country."