Queen Elizabeth was stuck meeting U.S. President Donald Trump and his wife Melania alone when Prince Charles and Prince William both reportedly “refused to attend.”
During informal planning discussions, both made organizers aware that they did not want any part of the meeting, the Sunday Times reported.
READ MORE: Donald Trump was 12 minutes late to tea with the Queen
“This business of Prince Charles and Prince William not being there for the Trump visit was a snub,” a source told the Sunday Times. “They simply refused to attend. It’s a very, very unusual thing for the Queen to be there on her own. Usually she is accompanied by somebody. Prince Charles has been substituting for Philip a lot recently.”
The meeting was reportedly scheduled to be as short as possible, although it ran 17 minutes over the allotted 30 minutes.
On Friday, Trump is said to have broken protocol several times after arriving 12 minutes late to the meeting at Windsor Castle. The president failed to bow to the Queen before walking in front of her while they were inspecting the guard.
When Trump’s predecessor visited in 2016, he lunched with the Queen and her husband, Prince Phillip, before dining with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
Organizers say as many as 250,000 Londoners participated in a protest of Trump’s first official visit to Britain.
READ MORE: ‘Together Against Trump’: British gather in thousands to protest U.S. president
The demonstrations began with a massive floating blimp outside Parliament depicting Trump as a snarling orange baby.
The U.S. president told a British tabloid he avoided the capital as much as possible.
READ MORE: From Trump’s resort to Edinburgh, thousands protest U.S. president across Scotland
The protests in the United Kingdom continued Saturday as Trump visited his golf club at Turnberry.
Outside the resort, a dozen demonstrators staged a “protest picnic,” chanting “Trump is a racist! Trump is a liar!” as hotel guests played golf just a 100 metres away.
A larger demonstration was held in Edinburgh as 10,000 people weaved through the capital’s streets in an anti-Trump protest.
*With files from the Associated Press
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