MPs laugh as Theresa May shares story about cheese mishap at picnic with the Queen

Watch: Theresa May shares story about cheese mishap at picnic with the Queen

This is the moment the entire House of Commons bursts into laughter at former prime minister Theresa May's anecdote about the Queen and some dropped cheese.

May, now a backbencher, was today one of the MPs to pay tribute to the Queen following her death aged 96 on Thursday.

Introducing her story, the Maidenhead MP said: “Her Majesty loved the countryside, and she was down to earth and a woman of common sense.

“I remember one picnic at Balmoral, which was taking place in one of the bothies on the estate. The hampers came from the castle, and we all mucked in to put the food and drink out on the table.

“I picked up some cheese, put it on a plate and was transferring it to the table. The cheese fell on the floor. I had a split-second decision to make.”

Mrs May paused as MPs laughed, before adding: “I picked up the cheese, put it on the plate and put it on the table. I turned round to see that my every move had been watched very carefully by Her Majesty the Queen.

“I looked at her. She looked at me and she just smiled. And the cheese remained on the table.”

May, who as PM between 2016 and 2019 held weekly audiences with the Queen, said she was "quite simply the most remarkable person I have ever met”.

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“These were not meetings with a high and mighty monarch, but a conversation with a woman of experience and knowledge and immense wisdom. They were also the one meeting I went to which I knew would not be briefed out to the media.”

The comment was also met with laughter by MPs, before May added: “What made those audiences so special was the understanding the Queen had of issues which came from the work she put into her red boxes, combined with her years of experience.”