The Queen kept a straight face today as ministers grinned with excitement during her historic visit to the Cabinet meeting at No 10.
While ministers such as Michael Gove, Owen Paterson and George Osborne were obviously amused by something, the Monarch alone maintained the decorum that has been the hallmark of her 60-year reign.
For a souvenir picture, she sat in the centre of her Cabinet, between the Prime Minister, who was caught by the camera with his mouth wide open, and Deputy PM Nick Clegg.
The Queen was then presented with a gift from ministers: a set of 60 bespoke table mats and a donation to her Diamond Jubilee Trust. “On behalf of everyone, I would like to congratulate you on a fantastic Jubilee year,” said David Cameron, as he invited her to sit in on the weekly discussion — making her the first peacetime Monarch to do so since 1781.
Cabinet ministers stood around the table until the Queen took the chair usually used by the Prime Minister. She sat silently during opening remarks but left after 30 minutes, citing another engagement.
The visit came at the end of an extraordinary year of celebrations to mark her Diamond Jubilee.
