Why Queen Camilla wore black on first public appearance with King Charles as a couple on this day 26 years ago
Charles and Camilla attended her sister's birthday party in January 1999King Charles and Queen Camilla stepped out for the first time as a couple on January 28, 26 years ago.
On January 28, 1999, the then Prince Charles attended Camilla Parker Bowles’ sister Annabel Elliot’s 50th birthday party in London. Pictures showed them leaving the Ritz Hotel shortly before midnight on January 28.
The outing – dubbed ‘Operation Ritz’ at the time – marked the first time Charles and Camilla had been seen in public as a couple.
They had obviously made headlines for many years previous to this, including during Charles’ marriage to Princess Diana.
Queen Camilla and King Charles’ first public appearance as a couple in January 1999
For the party, the now king looked smart in a blue suit with a shirt and tie. Meanwhile, Camilla wore all black as she sported a coat dress with tights and heels.
She paired the look with a black handbag and black heels.
People tend to wear black to blend in and they don’t want to stand out.
Pictures showed the pair leaving the Ritz Hotel as they got into a car. At the time, headlines erupted across newspapers declaring Charles and Camilla had finally gone public with their relationship.
Six years later in 2005, Charles and Camilla married in a civil ceremony at Windsor Guildhall.
Now, 26 years on, a body language expert has analysed the couple’s appearance and explained why Camilla may have opted for an all black outfit.
Why Camilla wore black outfit for first outing with Charles
Speaking to Royal Insider on behalf of Genting Casino, Darren Stanton said of the outing: “First of all, Camilla is wearing black. It’s like she’s off to a funeral. People tend to wear black to blend in and they don’t want to stand out.
“So I guess for her wearing black is a bit like the ending of a previous relationship. And she’s got a little bit of trepidation in her eyes and a little bit of fear and her micro expressions are showing that she’s actually really self-conscious of how she is going to be perceived – like her eyebrows puling towards each other and forced smile.
“She was known as the other woman. It was a big deal for her to be pictured with Charles and she knew there would be backlash. She doesn’t feel at ease but knows it’s something that had to be done.”
King Charles ‘very unconfident’ during 1999 outing with Camilla
He continued: “Charles is looking very unconfident and it’s only recently that we’ve seen him come into his own and feel less judged. When people are nervous or fearful, they do a thing called the open palm gesture.
“So when we put our hands in our pockets or tuck it in our jacket like Charles is doing it shows that his level of confidence was quite low. In a lot of these photos, there’s one where he is stepping away from Camilla and has his hands in his pocket. It’s quite a strange gesture for a man to make wearing a suit jacket.”
Read more: How Queen Camilla has supported King Charles through cancer ordeal
Darren added: “Not many people do it. But that was his gesture for feeling nervous and anxious. He was massively overwhelmed with the fact of whether the public would accept Camilla or not because there was a big outcry over Diana.
“They’re both not in a good place psychologically here, they’re fearful and anxious about how the world is going to react to them as a couple.”
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