Queen Elizabeth met the world gurning champion yesterday (05.06.08).
Popular on LondonNet
The queen – accompanied by husband Prince Philip – met Tommy Mattinson during a royal visit to Cumbria
Tommy was asked to demonstrate one of the poses which has helped him retain his face-pulling title for ten years, and when he did, the prince joked: “Don’t do that for too long or your face will stay like that.”
A gurn is a distorted facial expression and a typical one might involve projecting the lower jaw as far forward and up as possible, and covering the upper lip with the lower lip.
The queen and Philip were visiting the Beacon Museum in Whitehaven – a short distance from the nearby Egremont Crab Fair, where the world gurning championships have been held since 1266.
The royal couple later visited the Cumberland Pencil company’s new factory, and when invited to sit down, the queen was told she had been offered the same chair she had used on her last visit to the town, 30 years ago.
The assembled crowd laughed at her doubtful look, prompting general manager
David Sharrock to assure her: “We tested it earlier.”
