When Donald Trump touched down in the United Kingdom for his whirlwind state visit, even the flags got a makeover.
Officials in London were forced to order hundreds of custom-made U.S. flags with a deeper shade of red after complaints that Old Glory looked faded alongside the Union Jack, according to the man who had to make the changes.
The overhaul was estimated to have cost British taxpayers more than $67,000 as 66 hand-sewn flags were ordered to meet the Trump standard.
“Their red is now stronger than the red on the Union flag,” Nick Farley, the U.K. Government’s official flag supplier, told The Telegraph. He added that the U.S. delegation demanded the tweak.
“The Americans decided that the red we use, which is called R01, wasn’t right for them, and that they wanted a cherry red instead, so we had to buy all new flags for this visit,” he said.
The 66 hand-sewn flags, which lined The Long Walk leading up to Windsor Castle, didn’t come cheap. Each one cost £800 ($1,000) to produce, bringing the total bill for the upgrade to around £50,000 ($67,000), footed by the British taxpayer.
The cost wasn’t limited to the stars and stripes. Other expenses tied to the visit included enhanced security and ceremonial trimmings.
Mr Farley conceded that sun damage might have caused the red hue to become skewed. Asked whether U.S. officials would have noticed the change, he said they “absolutely would have.”
“Before a state visit, we have to provide samples and go to the embassies in London to get sign-off. Countries find it insulting if we get our colours wrong,” said Farley, whose company, the Flag Consultancy, is the official supplier of flags for state occasions.
The White House, State Department, and the U.S. Embassy in London have been contacted for comment.
Trump’s state visit in September sparked protests in London and other cities.
Trump stayed at Windsor Castle, reportedly in a separate room from his wife, Melania. Just as the president arrived, protesters projected massive images of Trump alongside Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted child sex offender, on the walls of the royal residence.
Campaign group Everyone Hates Elon also fundraised an advertising van to drive around the town of Windsor on Trump’s first full day at the castle, around 25 miles west of London.
The group also targeted the 11th-century residence, unfurling a 4,300 square-foot photograph of Trump and Epstein together at Mar-a-Lago in 1997, in a bid to “ruin Trump’s U.K. visit.”
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