Trump State Visit

[MrsLeonFarrell]

A space for thoughts.

My first is that being at Windsor might make it easier to host a foreign leader. Which then begs the question as to whether in the modern age we really need Buckingham Palace. None of the royals like living there and I bet you'd make a fortune hiring it out for events and tourists.

Whilst i find Catherine's coat dresses a little boring it makes sense to have a sort of uniform.

I don't think they look unwell. They look a bit tired but then they have just lost a much loved member of the family.

I think some of them look too slim and ill. But I'm not gettign into an argument.

It was truely pathetic when they kept pretending the Queen was alright when she was clearly close to ending her days.

Which then begs the question as to whether in the modern age we really need Buckingham Palace. None of the royals like living there and I bet you'd make a fortune hiring it out for events and tourists.

I suspect they'll slowly open it up much more to tourists like other palaces that aren't using as palaces anymore and maybe private events and state occaions with more popular leaders when crowds and protesters are less an issue.

I do think they like the balcony though for photos on big occaisions - and gardens for big garden parties they hold - but sure rest of time they'll have to make more use of it at some point.

Nooo love Melania's hat. She looks great

Has he? When was the second one

My apologies. President Hu Jintao visited in 2005.
I don’t know what the rules are re state visits but presumably poor human rights records don’t prevent them.

Well it's already paid off. Sure I heard on the news this morning, a multi million pound tech deal between US and UK. Sometimes you just have to hold your nose to reap the benefits and this is a huge financial benefit to the UK

Unclench and enjoy the pageantry and outfits

Clearly not. But that wasn't the point that I was making.

We shall see. We don't know the details of the tech deal yet.

Like I said, I hope that we reap the benefits, I really do. I understand why they think they need to hold their noses and flatter Trump. But it's cringe to watch, and I hope that they don't later end up regretting their decision.

But we have chosen to give this man, who is despised by much of the British public as well as the political establishment, an unprecedented second state visit and we are explicitly going OTT with the level of respect that we are paying him.

Would it be ok to give this level of respect to a leader who isn’t despised by much of the British public and the political establishment?

I think I would be.

I've had plenty of experience being charming to People I Do Not Like for most of my jobs and also being married to DH who has had some international jobs in the past. Ones where you have to act the charming Pleasant Hostess in the face of much provocation.

I'd be brilliant at being Royal re that.

Being Royal and having everyone trash my weight, my outfits, my hair, my family, my education and discussing if i am too thin / too tall/ too whatever. Not so much.

The money would be all right though.

Health is one of the areas that they need to think about going forward. They should individually have a right to privacy about their health but there also needs to be a strategy around health announcements to avoid rampant social media speculation. Of course in an ideal world people wouldn't speculate but we aren't in an ideal world.

I believe the late Queen took her duty very seriously and didn't want health to distract from it.

I actually think that Charles and Camilla look quite well for people in their mid/late 70s, especially Charles who is dealing with cancer.

Kate is not looking great though and I hope it’s not indicative of anything.

Catherine is recovering from cancer and chemotherapy. She has openly shared that recovery is difficult. So why keep repeating that she doesn’t look great? She’s in the process of healing.

She’s in the process of healing

Just feels sad and wrong somehow.

Kate is not looking great though and I hope it’s not indicative of anything

Kate's looking great and even If she wasn’t it’s more likely to be due to whatever illness she had that prompted huge surgery and cancer to be going by chance. She wasn’t just operated on to help the surgeons practice their stitches on her - she was operated on because she was unwell in the first place.

My main question at this point is why the fuck Melania isn't taking her hat off.

She's wearing gold for Trump!

The Royal family Instagram has the recipe for a new cocktail. It's meant to whole a fireside s'more. With whiskey, marmalade, marshmallow and pecans.

I don't think I'm a natural cocktail person because that sound awful (I don't like pecans for a start).

Lovely photo of Catherine and William.

So hard to dress with all those orders cluttering up the frock. I like the gold though, very elegant.

Gorgeous dress but it needed an up-do.

I just can't get past Melania staying with Trump. What tf is she thinking? How in gods name does she put up with him? Why does she even want to? He has zero redeeming features. He's not smart, not funny, not handsome, not a good leader, not well respected. It baffles me.

Money, status, power?

Is that Tiffany Trump behind W&K?

I thought she was a lampshade at first glance. Is it even her???

Why is Kate wearing such a frumpy dress/coat for the banquet?