Baroness Thatcher with the artist Richard Stone
Posted on 11/23/2009 1:32:23 PM PST by ScaniaBoy
Former prime minister Margaret Thatcher returned to 10 Downing Street to attend the unveiling of her portrait.
Dressed in a long royal-blue jacket, Baroness Thatcher was greeted on the steps of her former residence by Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his wife Sarah.
Mr Brown shook hands with Lady Thatcher, who paused for photographs outside the famous door of No 10 but said nothing to waiting reporters. As Lady Thatcher stood outside the door to Number 10, clasping her trademark handbag, some reporters called out "Is it good to be home?" and "Are you pleased to be back?"
Lady Thatcher's portrait was being unveiled at a private reception hosted by the Prime Minister and will go on permanent display in the stateroom's lobby on the first floor of Downing Street.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Baroness Thatcher with the artist Richard Stone
She looks very nice...as always.
Clueless reporters everywhere...
Related threads:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2391818/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2386057/posts
She’s hardly changed.
Still sturdy as ever, too.
The world misses you Lady Thatcher
Class act.
Hip, hip, hooray for the Iron Lady!
She still looks very good - the last remaing giant of the power troika of the ‘80s: Ronald Reagan, Pope John Paul and Baroness Thatcher.
Thank You for all you’ve done, Baroness.
Lech Walesa would be appropriate to include. I’ll never forget when he knelt next to Ronald Reagan’s casket and said a prayer. He had one hand on the flag draped casket. Very moving.
Last night I saw her amongst the Peers at the opening of the British Legislature (is that what it’s called ?) on C Span. She looked marvelous, but the commentator said she had not been well.
That was a very interesting program with all the pomp and circustance.
If I got the gist of it correctly, the Queen puts on her crown, comes to the House of Lords, ascends the throne and the Lord Chamberlain (I think) approaches, kneels and gives her a speech to read and backs down the stairs of the throne. However, I don’t think that it is HER speech. The speech has been written by the government. And it lays out what is to be accomplished in the upcoming session (just until the next election which is coming soon, as Brown and Labor are out).
This is the 53rd session that this Queen has opened. I thought it very strange that the Queen doesn’t write her own speech, but I guess that’s the Parliamentary system. She’s not really the ruler, after all.
All very strange.
The funniest part of the whole show is that the Queen goes to the House of Commons to try to give the speech and is barred from entering. I’m not sure the door is literally slammed in the face of the monarch any more.
The Prime Minister writes the speech and the Queen delivers it. Constitutional monarchy at work. :)
That practice goes back to Charles I when he entered the Commons personally with an armed escort to arrest Cromwell and his cohorts. He was the last monarch to enter the Commmons.
Britain’s Golden Age when Margaret Thatcher ran it. Now.............
That is not quite what happened last night.
The Queen entered the hall by a special entrance from the “robing room”, but after she’s seated she sent her emmisary down to Commons to notify them that she is ready to recieve them. The emmisary’s title is “Blackrod” because he carries a black rod. He marches down to Commons and they slam the door in his face. Then, Blackrod strikes the closed door with the metal end of his ebony rod — hard — and they open the door and he announces that the queen is ready. Then the MPs — who are a highly undisciplined group compared to the Peers — wander down to hear the queen read her speech.
BTW, the Lord Chamberlain delivers the speech to the Queen in a fancy embroidered bag. When she is done reading, he climbs the throne stairs again and puts the copy of the speech back into the bag.
If C-Span repeats this ceremony, it is worth watching.
And does anyone know what she is carrying in her purse? She always has a purse on her arm — even here.
I wonder if she will pay a visit to this architect of late 20th century freedom.
FReegards!
Birthday Wishes to Margaret Thatcher, Sarah Palin
BTW, I felt this thread is in need of some musical accompaniment. At first I thought of Pomp and Circumstances, but then I found this on an English blog (a blog that I recommend to all true conservatives):
Good one! But, the Queen is probably smarter.
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