We've had a busy week, with Queen Elizabeth II and Barack Obama both popping in for a cup of tea and look around. ROISIN INGLEcompares our international visitors to see who turned out to be the better house guest
Transport
Yes, he had helicopters buzzing all over the place and a humungous plane but Obama’s legendary bomb-proof Cadillac known as “The Beast” still came a cropper on a ramp in Ballsbridge.
In contrast the Queen’s Range Rover purred without incident around the streets of Dublin for the duration of the visit.
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The Queen, comfy blanket on her knees
Speeches
Two powerful introductions to two powerful speeches.
Obama: “Hello Dublin. Hello Ireland. My name is Barack Obama, of the Moneygall Obamas”. The Queen: “A hUachtaráin agus a chairde”, delivered in a near faultless Irish accent. (“Wow,” as President McAleese said, at least twice.)
Obama gave the story of his distant Irish roots (the missing O’Bama apostrophe), a national pep talk (the assurance that our “best days are yet to come”) and an Irish-American vote grabber (“there’s always been a little green behind the red white and blue”).
Disappointingly, he didn’t announce he was going to get the IMF off our backs, even if he did loan us his own personal creed, “Is féidir linn.”
If Obama’s speech was heavy on style, the Queen’s was all substance and contained a soundbite we’ll be quoting for years to come: “We must bow to the past but not be bound by it.”
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The Queen. Her cúpla focal outshone his
Entourage
Obama’s burly Secret Service men with their ear pieces and shades looked impressive (below) but the Queen’s secret weapon was her formidable-looking ladies-in-waiting. They could have taken out the SS easily with just one of their trademark basilisk stares. We were scared, anyway.
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The Queen, by a stout handbag
Security
It was like a national joint Garda and Defence Forces convention in Dublin for the duration of the Queen’s visit, when the city was practically in lockdown. There were gardaí on rooftops and on the ground doing random searches, while some citizens even reported being told by gardaí to close their windows when the Queen’s cavalcade was on the move. One Polish woman on the quays, when ordered to close her window, replied with an indignant: “But I am cooking fish”, which reportedly made no difference to the cops.
The tight security meant Dublin was eerily quiet – Corkonians fared better for their leg of the visit – in contrast to the cheers of the 100,000 people allowed in to the city to hear Obama’s address. He was only here for a day though, so security was bound to be less of an issue. If he stayed any longer it was only a matter of time before we’d have all have been put under house-arrest.
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Obama, but only because the visit was so short
Entertainment
In some ways, their gigs couldn’t have been more different. The National Convention centre was stuffed with handpicked representatives from the great and the good. College Green was awash with Jedward fans and their Mammies. The Queen had Mary Byrne and Riverdance. Obama had Imelda May and Jedward. Her Majesty had Oliva O’Leary. The president had Daniel Day Lewis.
In some ways the concerts were the same. They both had Westlife.
And they both seemed to go on just that little bit too long.
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Even stevens
Style
There are few VIPs who could compete with the diamond tiaras and take-your-eye-out brooches of Queen Elizabeth II’s wardrobe. She also, rather cunningly, made her way through almost all of the 40 shades of sartorial green (right). Not forgetting the 2,091 hand-sewn embroidered shamrocks and Swarovski crystal harp on the white gown she wore for the Dublin Castle banquet.
Michelle Obama was already behind in the style stakes when she emerged from the aircraft in a black and white ensemble (no green!) but the pair got extra points just for being catwalk-model tall.
Mrs Obama changed once – into a bright red print Marc Jacobs dress – and from kitten heels to sensible flats for the marathon Moneygall walkabout. She also sported a gorgeous silk trench coat which miraculously survived the downpour. On the downside she acquired an accidental Jedhead at Dublin airport when the wind played havoc with her up-do.
It goes without saying that Barack could wear a bin liner and still look cool.
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The Queen, by a tiara
Symbolism
The Queen’s visit was dripping not just with symbolism but with deep historical significance: the lowering of her head to remember fallen Irish patriots at the Garden of Rememberance; laying a wreath at Islandbridge in memory of the Irishmen who fought in the first World War (right); a Sinn Féin councillor in Cashel shaking her hand – a first for any member of that party.
In contrast, Obama coming “home” to Moneygall to the birthplace of his grandfather’s grandfather was more of a feelgood flesh-pressing masterclass, incorporating a global plug for the village, the pub and of course An Siopa Beag. However photogenic, the choreography of his pint-sipping antics paled against the simple image of the Queen bowing her head in remembrance of the Irish men who lost their lives fighting against her realm.
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The Queen, by a historic mile
Small Talk
Obama had an immediate edge in this category given that he is possessed of a resonant American politician’s voice as opposed to the bird-like cadence of the Queen. He is also a talker and he started the visit as he meant to go on. “The sun is coming out, I can feel it,” he said pointing skyward when he arrived at Áras an Uachtaráin.
Apart from some notable moments, such as in Dublin Castle when during the toast she was heard to say “I like this clinking glass”, Her Majesty’s small talk was difficult to catch.
But whether Obama was chatting about how he would put manners on wayward members of Congress with the swipe of a hurl or blabbing about the superiority of Irish Guinness, his blarney was designed to be heard and eminently quotable.
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Obama, by at least 10 snippets of quality off-the-cuff banter
Pints
The Queen visibly shrank away when presented with her Guinness, as though it was a glass of toxic sludge and not our national beverage. Her lips never even touched the glass.
Obama? Well, first he showed he knew the importance of letting the stuff settle and then he chatted about the expertise required to pour the perfect pint. He topped it all off with an anecdote about his first taste of Irish Guinness – on a Shannon stopover on the way to Afghanistan, controversially – when he discovered homegrown stout was a vast improvement on that served in America.
“What I realised was you are keeping all the best stuff here,” he said at which point Tourism Ireland officials wept with gratitude at the marketing opportunities opened up by this presidential quote.
Not only did he drain his glass (below), he flashed a €50 note, making it known to those gathered in Ollie Hayes’s pub in Moneygall that the President of the United States always “pays his own bar tab”.
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Obama drank the Queen under the table
Winner
Obama wins for feelgood factor but Her Majesty takes the overall crown for the lasting legacy of her visit
