HAPPY BIRTHDAY

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

She has launched 23 ships, sat for 139 official portraits (including one hologram), given out more than 78,000 Christmas puddings and is a patron to more than 620 charities and organizations.

She is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain — let's stick with the shortened version of the title — who will celebrate her 80th birthday Friday.

Her birthday week included a lunch Wednesday for others who celebrate their 80th birthdays the same day. On Friday, Prince Charles will pay a televised tribute to his mother; he will also host a birthday dinner for her and members of the royal family that evening. On Sunday, family members will attend a Service of Thanksgiving at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle to celebrate the queen's birthday.

To mark the event, Buckingham Palace has released 80 facts celebrating the queen's 80 years. While some of the facts are snoozy (she has conferred more than 387,700 honors and awards), others are fascinating (she learned to drive in 1945 when she joined the army). Here are more facts from the life of the long-serving monarch:

Two birthdays: The queen will celebrate two birthdays this year, her actual birthday (April 21) and her "official" birthday (celebrated June 17). Why two? The tradition of having an "official" birthday for the sovereign began when monarchs born in winter were prevented from having parades due to cold and wet weather. King Edward VII, born on Nov. 9, 1841, was the first sovereign to mark his official birthday on a day that wasn't his actual birthday. Queen Elizabeth continues this tradition. She celebrates her real birthday privately with friends and family; her official birthday is marked by ceremonies at Buckingham Palace.

To the moon: Though the queen has never visited the lunar surface, she left her mark there. She sent a message of congratulations (microfilm in a metal container) to the Apollo 11 astronauts who took it to the moon in 1969. The container was left there. She later welcomed the first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong, to Buckingham Palace, and U.S. astronauts Michael Collins and Edwin Aldrin, and Russian cosmonauts Yuri Gagarin (first man in space) and Valentina Tereshkova (first woman in space).

Staying in touch: The queen is a busy communicator. During her reign, she has received more than 3 million items of correspondence. She has sent more than 280,000 telegrams to couples in the United Kingdom and the British Commonwealth celebrating their 60th wedding anniversaries. She also has sent 100,000 telegrams to centenarians. Along with the Duke of Edinburgh, her husband, the queen has sent 37,500 Christmas cards. She also is a modern royal: In 1997, she launched Buckingham Palace's Web site.

Material girl: According to a statute from 1324 during the reign of King Edward II, the queen owns the sturgeons, whales and dolphins in the waters around the United Kingdom. During her reign, the queen has received many unusual gifts, including jaguars, sloths, beavers and an elephant. She also continues the royal family's long association with racing pigeons. In 2005, she claimed ownership to 88 cygnets on the River Thames.

But the two animals most associated with Her Majesty are horses and dogs. Her first pony was given by her grandfather, King George V, when she was 4 years old. She remains keenly interested in horses and horse racing. The queen has owned more than 30 corgis, starting with Susan, a present for her 18th birthday (a good portion of her dogs have been direct descendants from Susan). She owns five corgis: Emma, Linnet, Monty, Holly and Willow. She also introduced a new breed of dog, the "dorgi," the result of the mating of one of her corgis with a dachshund named Pipkin, which belonged to Princess Margaret. She owns four dorgis: Cider, Berry, Candy and Vulcan.