When Queen Elizabeth took King Abdullah for a drive in her Land Rover

After the death of Saudi King Abdullah on Thursday, speculation soon began about whether his younger brother and successor Salman will allow more reforms, such as permitting Saudi women to drive. A related anecdote from former British Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Sherard Cowper-Coles then went viral on Twitter.

It’s an excerpt from his book, “Ever the Diplomat: Confessions of a Foreign Office Mandarin.” In it, he describes a story told to him about Abdullah, who was then crown price of Saudi Arabia, and some discomfort he experienced while visiting Buckingham Palace:

Sherard Cowper-Coles’ anecdote about #KingAbdullah and the Queen at Balmoral in 1998 (reminded by @Doylech): pic.twitter.com/SO9GSp2RR9 — Shashank Joshi (@shashj) January 23, 2015

In addition to raising Corgis, the queen is no stranger to driving, going back to World War II:

PM_UR_CLEAVAGE_GIRL on May 6th, 2018 at 17:21 UTC »

that at a time when Saudi women were not allowed to drive.

So that could have been any time up until like 6 months ago

donfelicedon2 on May 6th, 2018 at 16:47 UTC »

She even did it without a driving license

At age 19, the then-princess learned to master a vehicle at a training center in 1945 while working in the wartime Auxiliary Territorial Service. But, as part of the “royal prerogative” – discretionary powers or rights that the sovereign alone enjoys — she has never needed to take a driving test because she is excluded from the regulations and laws governing the road, according to the authoritative Royal Encyclopedia.

source

design-responsibly on May 6th, 2018 at 16:17 UTC »

the Queen, an Army driver in wartime, accelerated the Land Rover along the narrow Scottish estate roads, talking all the time.

Of course, this was like 50 years after she was an Army driver, crazy.