The Queen of England was a fan of English rock, if François Hollande’s recollections are to be believed. This Saturday morning, two days after the death of the sovereign at the age of 96, the former President of the Republic went with his wife, Julie Gayet, to the British Embassy in Paris to sign the book of condolences. took the opportunity to count Reuters an amusing anecdote about an exchange with the monarch.
It was on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of D-Day that François Hollande, then president, received the queen of England for three days in June 2014. The former head of state recalls a dinner in which he spoke with the monarch about “his taste for French culture and the arts in general”. When the conversation turned to music, he got a little surprise:
“At one point, the Republican Guard was playing classical music. I said, ‘What kind of music do you want?’ And she said to me: ‘Is it possible that the Beatles play?’ And so the Republican Guard had played several Beatles songs.”
A “great friend of France”
“This was the queen,” “that combination of both austerity linked to her status, and familiarity and elegance,” he continues to AFP. The agency reports that she also praised “his desire for her to maintain the link between France and the UK.” Kingdom is indestructible and unbreakable “. This was underlined in the note that she left when signing the registry:
“To the great friend of France who throughout her reign has sought to strengthen ties between our two countries and who has aroused respect and admiration among French men and women of all generations and of all sensitivities, we express our immense gratitude and we share the pain. of the Royal Family and the British people.
At the exit, the former French head of state also greeted Charles III, proclaimed king on Saturday, who, he thinks, “will have another way of doing things, but who also has a passion that is defending the environment, ecology”.
Source: BFM TV
