Tony Blair says, has ‘street sense and it was
this ‘street sense’ that helped the Royal Family to recover its standing in the
aftermath of the death of Princess Diana.
Speaking ahead of the Queen’s 90th birthday this week, the
former prime minister said that the Royal Family was perceived to have reacted
‘coldly’ to the demise of the Princess of Wales in a car crash in Paris in
1997.
However Mr Blair said that it was the Queen’s shrewdness –
‘almost a street sense’ – which led to her decision to make a live broadcast to
the nation on the eve of Diana’s funeral.
‘She got the balance between showing emotion and retaining
the respect and dignity of the of the monarchy,’ Mr Blair told ITV.
And that is her hallmark. I mean she is very, very shrewd in
just a – what in another walk of life you would call almost a street sense.
‘She has a very
intuitive knowledge of where the people are, how they are feeling and how they
want her to behave.
‘She reflected, she thought about it, she adjusted, she
moved, and she then recovered her poise, and as a result of this, here we are
20 years or so on, and she is undoubtedly one of the most popular monarchs of
all time.
The former Labour leader, who now runs a consultancy
business, said that under Queen Elizabeth II, the Royal Family have ‘discovered
the ability to move with the times while retaining the essence of the
institution.
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