Her great-great grandmother, who was born on 24 May 1819, lived for 81 years, seven months and 29 days.

At 1700 GMT, the Queen beat the record, which was calculated after taking into account the times of their births and Victoria's death.

But the day was business as usual for the Queen, as there was no special event to mark the occasion.

The monarch, who was born on 21 April 1926, spent the day on her normal duties and had no public engagements or audiences.

The Queen will celebrate 60 years on the throne in 2012, and break Queen Victoria's record as the longest-reigning British monarch on 9 September 2015.

During her reign, the Queen's achievements have already included being the first British monarch to send an e-mail, to have a message put on the moon and to hold a public concert in her back garden.