This year, Britain will be seeing a lot more of Queen Elizabeth during the annual Buckingham Palace broadcast on Christmas Day. No, not like that, pervert. The queen's speech is going to be in 3D for the first time ever. It's unclear if it's going to be action-packed.

Normally, we'd be pretty surprised to see the 86-year-old monarch going all James Cameron on us in the traditionally quite sober appearance. Elizabeth's been full of surprises this year, though. Perhaps riding the high from her grandson's marriage to Kate Middleton, the queen made an unprecedented cameo in a short James Bond-themed film for the Summer Olympics in London, including a daring jump from a helicopter. (She didn't really jump. It was a stunt double.) Then, Elizabeth became an Internet meme after she visited the Combermere Barracks and was photographed grimacing at some sort of swamp creature and grinning at a machine gun. The meme is hipper than it sounds.

But it really has been an extraordinary year for Britain and for Queen Elizabeth, especially. Olympics aside, 2012 was Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee, a celebration marking 60 years on the throne, as well as her 65th wedding anniversary with Prince Philip. She's the first monarch to reach that milestone. And then just a few weeks ago, the queen learned she was going to be a great-grandmother. So if Elizabeth wants to film herself in 3D and then wear rapper glasses when she watches it on TV, she's allowed. It's been a big year.

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Adam Clark Estes