French President Emmanuel Macron was left hanging by his wife after she refused to take his hand as she disembarked an aircraft in front of high-ranking British royals.
Cringeworthy footage shows the moment Brigitte Macron, 72, avoided her 47-year-old husband as he reached out his hand toward her on Tuesday at RAF Station Northolt in Greater London. The French first lady refused her husband’s chivalry and descended the stairs alone as various dignitaries looked on from the tarmac ahead of an official state visit.
The Prince and Princess of Wales, otherwise known as Prince William and Kate Middleton, were on hand to witness the excruciating jilt as they welcomed the couple on behalf of Britain’s King Charles.
Macron then composed himself and gave an air kiss to the hand of the waiting Princess of Wales.
Mail Online reported that the frostiness didn’t end at the aircraft steps, as Brigitte Macron opted to focus on her cellphone instead of her husband after a waiting car whisked the pair away.
The snub comes after an incident in Vietnam in May, when France’s first lady appeared to shove her husband’s face right outside the cockpit of the presidential jet. The acrimonious moment was caught on camera as the plane’s door opened at the exact moment Brigitte Macron’s hand made contact with the president’s face.
At that moment, Emmanuel Macron noticed the plane’s open door and dutifully smiled and waved for the cameras. He later tried to explain away the situation, claiming he and his wife were just “horsing around.”
Their latest awkward moment came at about 11:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday as they prepared to meet the King Charles and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle.
There was a more jovial reception when the guests arrived at the royal residence, about 25 miles west of central London. Macron kissed Queen Camilla’s hand, while the king kissed the hand of the French first lady.
The two ladies, meanwhile, shared a chic French air kiss and chatted like old friends. Everyone then piled into a carriage and enjoyed a procession through Windsor, and along part of the Long Walk, the stretch of road that leads to the castle.
Later, the Macrons were set to enjoy a state banquet in honor of the French president’s visit. The French delegation were scheduled to hear a speech from the British king, stressing the importance of Anglo-French relations.
“Our two nations share not only values, but also the tireless determination to act on them in the world,” the monarch was set to say, according to Mail Online.
Ahead of the state visit, Macron highlighted the “friendship” and said: “Together, we will address the major challenges of our time: security, defense, nuclear energy, space, innovation, artificial intelligence, migration, and culture.”
Macron first met Brigitte in 1993, when she was his teacher at a private school in Amiens, northern France. He was 15 and she was 39 and married. The couple married in October 2007, when Macron was 29 and Brigitte was 54.
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