Bizarre Emmanuel Macron remark to Andy Burnham decoded
Emmanuel Macron marked the first international visitor to Downing Street since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister – and he made a bizarre comment upon entering No 10
A bizarre comment Emmanuel Macron made to Andy Burnham during a visit to Downing Street has been decoded. Macron marks the first international guest since to downing street since Burnham came into power on July 20.
The two leaders met at No 10 on Thursday morning after spending the previous evening together at the British Museum alongside the King to mark the special exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry. Burnham praised the cooperation between Britain and France in dealing with small boats, and claimed it was helping deter people from making the perilous journey across the Channel.
Data released by the Home Office showed the lowest total crossings since 2019 and the lowest number of people reaching the UK since 2020. There were 7,416 arrivals between June 1 and August 30 – compared to 15,458 over the same period in 2022 and 12,421 in 2022 under the Tories.
Following the visit, Emmanuel Macron’s team posted a video on social media summarising their visit which featured a number of clips of Macron, Burnham and their wives, Brigitte and Marie-France van Heel.
A number of people commented how interactions between the four did not not look forced and they seemed to be ‘genuinely laughing’. The video did, however, feature a bizarre comment from Macron about Larry the cat.
At the start of the video, Brigitte Macron said: “Just a regret: Larry? Where is the cat?” and Emmanuel Macron replies: “Yeah, is Larry available? I hope he’s not in the British Museum.”
Although the comment may seem bizarre on its own, it refers to a viral social media post from Larry the Cat, known as @number10cat on X. After it was announced that the Bayeux Tapestry was arriving in London, Larry’s account quoted it with the joke about resisting the feline urge to use the priceless textile as a giant scratching post.
The French President was seemingly making a joke about Larry not being near the 11th-century embroidered cloth that measures nearly 70 meters long and depicts the events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.
Dozens of people commented on the video to mention the comment, which some people called “iconic”.
One person said: “The comment about the British museum ICONIC”
A second said: “She’s like me… first question where’s the cat”
A third said: “The museum line was a zinger.”
A fourth added: “You know what this actually looks like genuine chit chat, genuine laughing, with genuine people who are actually enjoying being around each other. For once it doesn’t look forced and rigid.”
Others, however, were not convinced by the video.
One person said: “Socialists having fun together whilst screwing their own people and countries.”
A second said: “Geez, how many prime ministers has macron had to deal with?”
A third said: “Even the French PM knows its Larry that is really in charge.”
