The carriage procession around the grounds of Windsor Castle for Donald Trump’s unprecedented state visit has been mocked online as “Monty-Pythonesque”. The US President sat alongside the King in the Irish State Coach, while the Queen and First Lady Melania Trump followed them in a separate carriage.
Although there was much pomp and pageantry, what made this procession different was that no members of the public were able to watch the spectacle amid a major policing and security operation. On X, journalist Alex Taylor wrote: “Honestly find this one plain weird, all totally cut off from reality, no flag-waving actual people – and what with the rain (Macron had Windsor High St AND sun !) – it’s all a bit Monty-Pythonesque.” Meanwhile, Daily Mail diary editor, Richard Eden, described the non-public facing carriage procession as “embarrassing, like a fairground ride to entertain the US President”, adding: ”The whole point of a royal carriage procession is so the public can see you.”
