Royal etiquette: ‘Other people may prefer to simply shake hands’

THE residents of the Onthank scheme are not the first to breach etiquette when confronted by royalty.

Edinburgh’s former lord provost, Eric Milligan, was rebuked after telling how, while watching England’s World Cup defeat to Argentina with the Queen, Her Majesty supposedly leapt to her feet when an England goal was disallowed and exclaimed: “One is not amused by that!”

Paul Keating, who was then prime minister of Australia, caused outrage and earned the nickname “Lizard of Oz”, after putting his hand on the Queen’s back during a royal visit in 1992.

However, Clarence House said there were no strict rules on touching royalty, pointing to Michelle Obama putting her hand on the Queen’s back during a recent visit.

On the official website of the British monarchy, the guidance on how to address members of the Royal Family is more focused.

“There are no obligatory codes of behaviour when meeting the Queen or a member of the Royal Family, but many people wish to observe the traditional forms,” it says.

“For men this is a neck bow [from the head only], whilst women do a small curtsy. Other people prefer simply to shake hands in the usual way.

“On presentation to the Queen, the correct formal address is ‘Your Majesty’ and subsequently ‘Ma’am’.”