Governor-General David Hurley reveals dread at answering 1.38am call from Buckingham Palace

Governor-General David Hurley says the Queen was ‘warm, funny and sincere’ in his last conversation with her.

Queen Elizabeth II receives David Hurley and his wife, Linda, during an audience at Buckingham Palace in 2019. Picture: Getty Images

Governor-General David Hurley has mourned the passing of Queen Elizabeth II and says he will treasure his last conversation with the monarch earlier this year.

Mr Hurley confirmed he received a call from Buckingham Palace at exactly 1.38am and picked up the phone with a sense of dread.

“I had a sense it was news that I desperately did not want to hear,” he said in an address on Friday night commemorating the Queen.

“What is clear is that even though her life has ended, her example to us all has not. That example of selfless service, devotion to duty and compassion for others is both an enduring legacy and a gift to us.”

David Hurley signs the condolence book for Queen Elizabeth II at Government House.

Mr Hurley said the Queen always thought of others even at times of great personal tragedy.

“When Linda and I spoke with Her Majesty following the death of Prince Philip, the first thing she inquired about was the welfare of Australians, particularly Western Australians impacted by Tropical Cyclone Seroja,” he said.

“She was mourning the death of her husband of 73 years yet her first question was to know how Australians in need were faring. The care and compassion was sincere.”

The Governor-General confirmed he last spoke to the Queen when he introduced the four Australians of the Year for 2022.

“She was warm, funny and sincere in her interest in their work and our country,” he said.

He said the love for the Queen was evident across the Commonwealth, particularly at the celebration of Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.

“There was certainly excellence and much cause to praise in Her Majesty’s life,” he said.

“She consistently demonstrated tireless and selfless service, devotion to duty and a compassion for others. Those are values to which we should all aspire and hope to meet. They are as relevant today as they were 70 years ago.”

Mr Hurley said he was proud to have lived in the second Elizabethan age.

“Her legacy will be profound. History will remember few like Queen Elizabeth II,” he said.

“We mourn her passing, we are grateful that we have witnessed, and benefited from, her remarkable life. May she rest in peace.”