Queen Camilla sparks outrage with royal protocol

Queen Camilla has been criticised over the royal protocol issued before an event she attended recently.

Released ahead of a ceremony marking 30 years of the Women's Prize for Fiction, the protocol asks participants to follow certain guidelines in the presence of King Charles's wife. 

Commenting on the requirements given in the protocol,  anti-monarchy group's head Graham Smith said, "The state of this nonsense. A women’s prize event and all guests are put firmly in place with a written guide on how to talk to someone who believes she’s better than them. Is Camilla incapable of normal conversation?"

When a royal expert came to the Queen's defence, Smith out rightly dismissed her arguments on X, formerly Twitter. 

Replying to the Republic's CEO's criticism, Jennie Bond wrote, "This is the precise advice from the Palace: The King and Queen meet thousands of people each year in the UK and overseas. Before meeting Their Majesties, many people ask how they should behave. The simple answer is that there are no obligatory codes of behaviour - just courtesy."

Smith, however, was not convinced with her response.  

Dismissing her argument the anti-monarchist said, "Courtesy is a two way street, and is what most people show each other. A simple hello and handshake and exchange of a few words is courteous. This is deference and sycophancy."