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The Queen revealed her least favourite prime minister was Tony Blair

Ellen Manning
Updated ·2-min read
Queen Elizabeth II greeting Prime Minister Tony Blair as he arrives at a reception for The Queen's Award for Enterprise at Buckingham Palace in central London in July 2004. (PA)
Queen Elizabeth II greeting Prime Minister Tony Blair as he arrives at a reception for The Queen's Award for Enterprise at Buckingham Palace in central London in July 2004. (PA)

The Queen's funeral will be attended by many of the prime ministers she worked alongside during her 70 year reign - including one said to be her least favourite.

According to one anecdote, the monarch revealed on one occasion that her least favourite prime minister was Tony Blair, although she also apparently "loathed" Boris Johnson.

The Queen worked with 15 different prime ministers during her reign, from Winston Churchill right through to Liz Truss, who she met officially just before her death on Thursday, 8 September.

Labour leader Keir Starmer (L), former British Prime ministers Tony Blair (2L), Gordon Brown (3L), Boris Johnson (C), David Cameron (4R), Theresa May (3R) and John Major (2R) gather ahead of the Accession Council ceremony inside St James's Palace in London on September 10, 2022, to proclaim King Charles III as the new King.
Former British Prime ministers Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, Boris Johnson, David Cameron, Theresa May and John Major attended the Proclamation Ceremony for King Charles III. (AFP)

Read more: 'Sick old man': Prince Andrew heckled by protester during Queen's coffin procession

Of those, six remain alive: John Major, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson.

They all gathered at the Proclamation Ceremony for King Charles III on Saturday 10 September, alongside currently PM Liz Truss, and are likely to attend the Queen's state funeral on Monday 19 September.

In an article in the Sunday Times, the newspaper’s chief political commentator Tim Shipman revealed the Queen's thoughts on some of the leaders of the country she had dealt with.

In one anecdote, he described how a former prime minister of one of the Queen's realms had revealed that a senior French diplomat told him he had quizzed the monarch on who her favourite PM was.

According to the tale, she had replied: "That’s not the right question. What you should ask me is who has been my least favourite", then revealed the answer was Tony Blair.

File photo dated 24/7/2019 of Queen Elizabeth II welcoming the newly-elected leader of the Conservative party Boris Johnson during an audience in Buckingham Palace, London, where she invited him to become Prime Minister and form a new government. The Queen saw 13 Prime Ministers come and go during her reign - with Boris Johnson as the 14th. Issue date: Thursday September 8, 2022.
One palace source said the Queen 'loathed' Boris Johnson. (Getty)

Apparently following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, the Queen had disliked the term 'people's princess' coined by Blair and Alastair Campbell.

But the article also suggested that Boris Johnson wasn't particularly liked by the monarch.

A source described as "close to" Buckingham Palace was quoted as saying: "At least she will be spared having to give Boris a knighthood. I think she loathes Boris because of his behaviour."

According to the report, the source of the Queen's dislike was Johnson's reference to the monarch as 'Her Maj', and the fact his own scandal meant he could not help when headlines were focused on Prince Andrew.