Queen Elizabeth II is "much livelier in private than what the public sees," royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith said in a new cover story for People.

In the interview, Bedell Smith, author of Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch, shared details about the 94-year-old royal's private side, specifically how she interacts with close confidantes in between royal engagements. According to the author, the queen has quite the sense of humor, and royal aides have become accustomed to hearing her joyous laugh reverberate through the castle halls at her Sandringham estate.