From another news site:
When first lady Michelle Obama hugged Queen Elizabeth yesterday, it was reminiscent of the classic American masterpiece “Tommy Boy” when Chris Farley, embracing his new stepbrother said, “Brothers don’t shake hands, brothers gotta hug!”
Now while it was perfectly acceptable and quite frankly — touching — when this act of love occurred in the movie, it’s not supposed to happen with the queen.
Queens don’t hug!
In fact, it is considered a breach of royal protocol.
Eyewitness
What happened next rocked the world. Or at least Britain. Get a load of how the Daily Mail reported it:
“The Queen started chatting to Michelle Obama. She appeared to look up at her and make a comment about how tall she was,” said an eyewitness. “As she did, she put her arm around Mrs Obama and rested her gloved hand on the small of her back.”
“Almost simultaneously, Mrs Obama put her arm around the Queen’s shoulders rather more firmly. The pair then looked at their feet and appeared to be discussing their shoes.”
“The Queen then dropped her arm and, a few seconds later, Michelle did the same. The entire exchange lasted around eight to ten seconds but was absolutely extraordinary,” gasped the observer.
Historymaking
Overly dramatic? Apparently not. The reporter goes on to say, “No-one - including the ladies-in-waiting standing nearby - could believe their eyes. In 57 years, the Queen has never been seen to make that kind of gesture and it is certainly against all protocol to touch her.”
It makes you wonder if in times past you would have heard an immediate “Off with her head!”
They take this so seriously, apparently, that when Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating dared touch the queen back in 1992, he was besieged with criticism, later earning the nickname “Lizard of Oz.”
Thankfully Michelle didn’t go all Blarney Stone on Her Majesty.
According to the Daily Mail it sounds like the queen knew she’d better bow to the wife of the anti-christ.
Was this the first time the Queen hugged a “person of color” ... jus askin’
Wonder if she’ll save those gloves forever..
Well, I’m not an expert on royal protocol, but if the Queen touched Michelle first (in an unprecedented move on the Queen’s part, too), could it really have been that big of a faux pas?