In the wake of the death of Queen Elizabeth II, celebrities around the world have shared stories about their experiences with the monarch and, in some cases, gave us a peek into her personal life. While it was well known that the queen loved her corgis and horses, little was known about the stoic, private royal.

But according to an unearthed interview with composer Angelo Badalamenti, Her Royal Majesty was an avid Twin Peaks fan.

So much so, in fact, that she once turned down a private birthday performance from The Beatles’ Paul McCartney in favor of watching the surrealist cult classic.

“Back when Twin Peaks was kicking off around the world, I flew by Concorde to London, to work with Paul McCartney at Abbey Road. He said, ‘Let me tell you a story,’” the longtime David Lynch collaborator told NME back in 2011. Badalamenti composed the music for both Twin Peaks and its prequel film Fire Walk With Me; the soundtrack for the latter was later designated as NME’s best film soundtrack ever.

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“Not long before we met, he’d been asked to perform for the queen for her birthday celebrations. And when he met her, he started to say, ‘I’m honored to be here tonight, your Majesty, and I’m going to play some music for you.’ And the queen says, ‘I’m sorry, I can’t stay, it’s five to eight and I have to go and watch Twin Peaks.”

We wouldn’t want to miss an episode either, your Majesty.

Badalamenti Shares Question He Asks Directors to Compose Great Soundtracks

One of the most striking parts of David Lynch’s work, from Twin Peaks to Blue Velvet, has always been the score. Using sound to create a disconcerting environment in which reality can be bent, Badalamenti provides a strong backbone for Lynch’s surrealism.

And the key to making a great soundtrack, he says, is creating contrast.

“Like Julee Cruise, with her ethereal, angelic voice…to have her singing in a rough redneck bar, as she does in Fire Walk With Me. I mean, there’s no way in hell that would really happen. It’s the contrast that makes it work,” he said.

To achieve this contrast, Badalamenti shared the one question that he asks directors ahead of composing a soundtrack: what do you want your audience to feel?

“Do you want to scare the sh-t out of them? Squirm in their seat? Feel beautiful? And how they answer that question gives me cues to work on,” he said. “I translate their words into music.”