(Ottawa) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set aside royal pomp and decency for a few moments on Saturday night in London to sing Gregory Charles’ Bohemian Rhapsody at the piano.
Posted at 5:16 p.m
Mr Trudeau had been leading the Canadian delegation to London since Friday, who were due to attend the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, who died on September 8, on Monday morning.
The prime minister’s office said Trudeau and other members of the Canadian delegation met in the hotel lobby after dinner Saturday night to sing along to Gregory Charles.
In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office says that when Gregory Charles started playing in the lobby of the London hotel, other people, including Mr Trudeau, joined him around the piano.
In a 14-second video posted to Twitter, which has racked up nearly a million views, Mr Trudeau can be seen in a T-shirt singing British rock group Queen’s famous song, Bohemian Rhapsody.
The Prime Minister’s Office recalls that Mr Trudeau “has taken part in various activities to pay tribute to the sovereign” over the past 10 days and that the entire Canadian delegation attended Monday’s state funeral in London.
The Canadian delegation also included former Governors General Michaëlle Jean and David Johnston, and former Prime Ministers Kim Campbell, Jean Chrétien, Paul Martin and Stephen Harper. It is not known which members of this delegation took part in the impromptu choir on Saturday evening.
In an interview with Radio-Canada on Monday morning, Gregory Charles explained that amid an extremely busy schedule, the Canadian delegation had “a little impromptu moment of joy on Saturday night”.
When he saw the piano in the hotel lobby, “the five minutes could have turned into maybe two hours of Canadians singing together,” Gregory Charles told Patrick Masbourian’s show on Monday.
“My father would have been very proud of that, because a funeral isn’t just austerity, it’s not just inner reflection, it’s also the celebration of a life and the celebration of our lives. »
The musician is a member of the Order of Canada, an honorary decoration bestowed by the Governor-General, the Queen’s representative in Canada.