The Queen Was Photographed on the Phone and Accidentally Became a Meme

The Queen is still taking weekly audiences with Prime Minister Boris Johnson despite coronavirus—accidentally creating an amazing meme in the process.

commonwealth day service 2020
(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo)
  • First things first: Queen Elizabeth II, who met with son Prince Charles a couple of weeks before he was diagnosed with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), remains in great health.
  • So much so, in fact, that she's still taking weekly audiences with Prime Minister Boris Johnson—accidentally creating an amazing meme in the process.
  • She recently issued a statement about COVID-19, saying, "You can be assured that my family and I stand ready to play our part."

The Queen's a meme! Well, technically, Queen Elizabeth memes were already a thing, but it's a rare thing when the Royal Family basically serves us up a meme template on a silver platter. But that's exactly what happened: The royal family's official Instagram posted a side-by-side image of the Queen and Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the phone, having their weekly call but making sure to practice proper social distancing. (ICYMI, Johnson tested positive for COVID-19, and so did the Queen's son Prince Charles, but the official report is that the Queen's in great health. She's a badass, no biggie.)

After marveling over the old corded phones the two were using (also, check out how many corgi references the Queen has on her desk), fans were absolutely delighted by the potential opportunities. "THANK YOU FOR THIS VERY CLEAR MEME," wrote one. "I can already see the memes 😂👍" laughed another.

boris covid phone

(Image credit: @theroyalfamily)

Twitter got in on the fun, too, with fans thinking that this should be a caption competition and thanking the Royal Family for this content we all desperately need right now:

queen

(Image credit: @pollyth0mas)

Now, there are already some pretty great QE2 memes on the rise:

twitter

(Image credit: @MikeyCyrus)

twitter

(Image credit: @mrlkdds)

twitter

(Image credit: @Sandancer60)

twitter

(Image credit: @MattLCapon)

Fans speculated that noted royal satirist Gary Janetti would immediately jump at the chance to write something devastatingly snarky. And, sure enough, in the wake of the news that Prince Charles had been diagnosed with COVID-19:

garyjanetti

(Image credit: @garyjanetti)

Ouch, and also, amazing! I need more royal memes, please.

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Katherine J. Igoe
Contributor

Katherine’s a Boston-based contributor at Marie Claire who covers fashion, culture, and lifestyle—from “Clueless” to Everlane to news about Lizzo. She’s been a freelancer for 11 years and has had roles with Cosmopolitan and Bustle, with bylines in Parents, Seventeen, and elsewhere. It’s “I go to dinner,” not “Her huge ego,” but she responds to both.