Malcolm Turnbull fights back tears remembering Queen Elizabeth II

Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has shared a wild story from his meeting with the Queen, and the quip she made during the chaotic visit.

Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has shared a wild story from his meeting with the Queen, and the quip she made during the chaotic visit.

Mr Rudd said the monarch’s sense of humour was on display when the pair met, and she joked one of her corgis was “a trollop”.

“The next time we met, Therese and I were at dinner with herself and Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace,’’ he said in an interview with ABC radio.

“We were having a great conversation about the Commonwealth, Therese was having a great conversation with Prince Philip about dogs. And Therese is a big dog fan. And so she leans across the table and says to Her Majesty, ‘Can we see the dogs?’ She leaned over and said, ‘You mean the corgis?’

“Therese said, ‘Yes, of course. I’m dying to see the corgis.’ ‘Really?’ ‘Yes, huge corgi fan.’

“Even though Therese is a spaniel fan. A button was interpreted and all of a sudden the dining room was inundated with corgis! There were about seven. They almost wrecked the place.

“Therese leans over and says, ‘That one down there looks different to the others.’ The Queen was sipping on her favourite drink. Puts her glass down and says, “Yes, yes. She is different to the others. Her mother was a trollop.”

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Former PM Kevin Rudd shared a story about the Queen and her corgis. Picture: Steve Parsons / POOL / AFP

In another interview this morning, republican Malcolm Turnbull fought back tears as he paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II’s “charm and calm” and formidable leadership.

The former prime minister, who campaigned for Australia to become a republic 1999, said it was a morning of great sadness for Australians.

“Lucy and I went to bed last night in dread and we woke up in grief. The Queen was an extraordinary presence for all of our lives,’’ he told ABC TV.

Mr Turnbull became emotional towards the end of the interview, confessing he was “filled with, as Lucy is, with great sadness” as his eyes filled with tears.

“When we met the Queen on that occasion (in 2017), she gave us a portrait of herself - the official portrait of herself and Prince Philip, which I’m sure they give to every prime minister, and she said with a wry smile, she said, “Here you are. You can put them in a cupboard, I suppose’,’’ he said.

“Which was charming and funny and last night, as we were filled with such dread because it was obvious that things would turn very bad, I took the portrait of the Queen out and set it up and we just thought, “What an amazing life. What amazing leadership,” and it is the end of an era.”

Malcolm Turnbull appeared to tear up during an interview about the Queen. Picture: ABC

Mr Turnbull said she also had a memorable sense of humour.

“She was very droll. I will keep the discussion, maybe for history, for later, but today I would say she was very droll, very good sense of humour and a disarming sense of humour that puts you at your ease,’’ he said.

“She had charm and calm, and that was a very formidable and effective combination.

“I think she embodies an instinctive conservatism. Most people in politics in Australia, let alone in the United States, who call themselves conservatives wouldn’t know the difference between Edmund Burke and Tony Burke, and the Queen was a natural conservative.

“She understood the importance of institutions and traditions, and so she defended them, but she also understood that because they are living things, they have to grow and develop in an organic way.”

Mr Turnbull said that King Charles was someone who tried to do “good things”.

“God bless King Charles — he is a really good man — he is a really good man,’’ he said.

“He is a good person, he wants to do good and he is an environmentalist, he has been way ahead of his time on those issues, and - but obviously your next question is about the Republic naturally, but I just say that.

“Charles’ attitude, as indeed the Queen’s attitude and the attitude of her whole family, is that it is a matter for Australians, absolutely.”

Queen Elizabeth II greets Malcolm Turnbull and his wife Lucy Turnbull at Buckingham Palace in 2018. Picture: Victoria Jones - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Earlier today, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he and Governor-General David Hurley will travel to London as a mark of respect.

“Queen Elizabeth II has been a wise and encouraging guide. Always wanting the best for our nation and greeting each change with understanding, good grace and an abiding faith in the Australian people’s judgment,’’ Mr Albanese said.

“From her first trip here, it was clear Her Majesty had a special place in our hearts. And we, in hers.”

Former prime minister Scott Morrison said it was a sorrowful day.

“That is the best way I think I can describe it, Jenny woke up before me and she broke the news and we sat there in stunned disbelief at the same time, terribly great sorrow,’’ he said.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said Australians “marvelled at her unflagging service”.

“Not only did our queen earn our trust, she also won our admiration,” he told ABC News Breakfast.

“Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II lived through the pivotal events of the 20th and 21st centuries. Wars, conflicts, depression and recession. The end of an empire and decolonisation, the race to the moon and the attainment of civil rights.”

Former high commissioner to the United Kingdom George Brandis said the Queen was not only a respected world leader but a warm and engaging woman who was “like your grandmother”.

“And more than just being a beloved figure. She was the only monarch that almost anybody can remember,’’ he said.

“She was so easy to talk to. She was very friendly. I know it sounds a bit like a cliche, but she was like your grandmother. She had spent her life putting people at their ease. And she was the easiest person to be with.”

Originally published as Malcolm Turnbull fights back tears remembering Queen Elizabeth II