King Charles hosts French President for State Visit

[My2cents1975]

After Brexit, the Royal Family (Queen Elizabeth and then King Charles) have deployed soft power to support Anglo-French rapprochement.

Hopefully politicians will pursue improved co-operation between the two nations as it is critical for security (Ukraine war) and prosperity (reducing trade barriers for small to medium businesses hit hard by increased red tape post-Brexit).

King Charles hosts President Macron and his wife Brigitte at Windsor for state visit

I hardly ever suggest this, Thedom, not least as I don't do armchair diagnosis, but ... alzheimers?

We can't know of course, but it would explain a lot, not least the attack on her husband given the personality changes the disease can sadly bring

You talk to the person to the left or right of you depending on which course you’re on. But I have seen it done where you also speak to someone a couple of seats away from you if you’re not ignoring the people next to you.

We were taught these things when my husband did his officer training at specially arranged functions where you learned the art of small talk for eg

Brigritte Macron just looks thoroughly miserable at all times. Maybe she just has 'resting bitch face' but she looks like she would rather be anywhere but here.

Catherine looks absolutely sublime, as does Camilla.

Love Catherine’s daytime outfit. Really don’t like the evening frock-it swamps her.

Generally I think red is Kate's colour but not this time. I'm not sure if it's the shade of red - or at least how it photographs - or the fact that it swamps her, but it's a little drab. Not a terrible look by any means, but not one of Kate's finest fashion moments.

It's easy to forget with Catherine clothes that she has also changed roles. She gone from sitting on the sidelines to sitting near to the king and next to the guest of honour. It has to be better to play safe than to be in the headlines with the appropriateness of her clothes. Especially in a world of social media. She dressed for the role and probably ticked all the boxes she was instructed to tick.

I think that's a very reasonable suggestion. We'll be lining grandma's old basin with thin slices of sponge cake next week, then.

Is there a link to the menu that I’ve missed?

Avoid anything that someone standing behind you can see down

They don’t even have to be standing behind you. There’s grimly fascinating video footage of the time then-Crown Princess Mary of Denmark turned around at a state dinner and realised the guest to her left was blatantly staring down her dress.

I may have missed an update (the early, very harsh comments about Mme Macron on this thread make me suspect this) but I think just on the basis of the notorious plane incident pps should hold fire.

iI admit that some kind of problem like the one you mention did spring to mind. I’d be very surprised if Mme M would behave in such a way in such a public context if everything was 100% fine.

i know striking anyone is unacceptable but there may be circumstances we are unaware of.

I may have missed an update (the early, very harsh comments about Mme Macron on this thread make me suspect this) but I think just on the basis of the notorious plane incident pps should hold fire

I reported one and it’s been removed. It’s not something I wanted to be associated with even just as someone posting on the same topic as the vile poster.

Are we seeing the same photos? That’s a wild exaggeration.

love the Dior look, not so keen on the evening dress but it’s OK - I don’t think she looks anywhere approaching ‘dreadful’ in any photo.

I think that’s a very likely explanation too. She just doesn’t look right to me. What wouod macron do in that situation? It would be so difficult .

It would be difficult because in those cases people can be fine most of the time and then something just flips. I do hope she’s actually OK.

The RF have been very fortunate in recent reigns that the monarch (and other working royals) have remained very sharp and on the ball into extreme old age.

You would have to wonder what is going on with her , I wondered too when I saw the airplane incident. When my lovely MIL was in the very early stages of Alzheimer's, she became irrationally aggressive towards my FIL, but not anyone else. There was one time when my FIL asked my daughter to pour him a glass of water and she went ballistic, screaming at my FIL that you don't ask your grandchildren to do things for you, it should be the other way around and throwing insults at him. My daughter, who adores her grandmother, was in tears and traumatised, as my MiL was the most gentle loving and doting person you could meet, never heard her raise her voice, plus she was also a bit subservient to my FIL (cultural), so it was really out of character for her, it progressed from there. But that incident was really the first time we can pinpoint her personality changing.

Mme. Macron could be just a bad 'un. Mr. Macron may have had his head turned elsewhere. We could theorise all day, but that episode on the plane was very very bad IMO.

If it was a manifestation of dementia or some mental difficulty, surely it would be a huge risk having her accompany him in case she went rogue again. That might explain her dead eyes, perhaps tranxed up to the eyeballs to keep her quiet. That's not good either.

Still it's all OK again now in public anyway. So all that's left is speculation I suppose.

You’re not supposed to talk across the table at events like this-one side per course!

No link. I simply asked google something like 'state banquet....' and the drop-down offered 'menu' as well as sundry other things.

Apparently Brigitte lost her sister a week ago to whom she was very close. If that’s the reason, you would think macron would be very solicitous but that’s not how he comes across.

Poor woman - that must be hard. I’m not surprised she’s a little ‘ out of it’ in that case.

I thought he had offered his hand when she was coming down the steps of the aircraft but she didn’t appear to accept the offer. And quite honestly would he be getting this level of concern if the roles had been reversed a few weeks ago?

Brigitte didn’t have to be on the visit, she could have cited poor health or said she was in mourning and someone would have taken her place on the trip. I’m sure people would have understood but she’s here and at the very least has to go through the motions of it.

I don’t know what it is we saw a couple of weeks ago but whatever it was, it didn’t look good and people are entitled to speculate. I don’t think Brigitte is unwell and I’m pretty sure that if she is, their team would know about it by now and she wouldn’t be on the trip just in case there was another ‘situation’. Her sister passing away would be the perfect excuse for her not being able to do the trip.

I totally agree that the incident was shocking and we don’t know the context. It’s never OK to hit someone! But I can’t get my head round a Head of State’s partner being so out-of-control as to do this pretty much in public. It’s almost beyond belief unless there are mitigating circumstances in terms of some kind of mental issue.

Even if we believe Macron that it was a jokey slap (and I don’t think his facial expression at the time supports that idea) it would still be a highly undignified action.

When my lovely MIL was in the very early stages of Alzheimer's, she became irrationally aggressive towards my FIL, but not anyone else

Yes, I've seen it happen myself, @Thedom, and though I also criticised the attack on the aircraft that was before it became more obvious that there may be something more going on

I wasn't aware her sister had died very recently though, so maybe it's just that; as said we can't possibly know

The Macrons arriving in Downing Street today.

The headline I saw said something along the lines of the President being stopped in his tracks by Brigitte.

www.dailymail.co.uk/video/news/video-3473331/Video-Moment-Brigitte-Macron-stops-Emmanuel-tracks-outside-No-10.html

All very strange