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King Charles appeared unbothered by a group of protestors who gathered at his recent appearance holding “Not My King” signs. A body language expert said his reaction was predictable since he possesses the same stoic trait as Queen Elizabeth.

King Charles ignores protestors in Milton Keynes
King Charles | ARTHUR EDWARDS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Body Language expert analyzes King Charles’ reaction to protestors at recent appearance

On Feb. 16, King Charles arrived in Milton Keynes to attend royal engagements marking its new city status. He was greeted by anti-monarchy protesters who held signs reading “Not My King.” The demonstrators shouted, “Why don’t you answer your critics?”

Body language expert Judi James found King Charles’ reaction to the protestors to be predictable, as he was unfazed by the situation and ignored the demonstrators. James told The Mirror that King Charles has “stoicism in his DNA.”

James compared Charles’ reaction to a 1994 incident. “In 1994 the then Prince Charles was standing on stage in Sydney, Australia, when a student rushed up firing blank shots,” the expert said. “Charles’ reaction then re-defined the word ‘stoic’ as he continued straightening the cuffs of his shirt, standing watching with what looked like mild interest and even seeming to crack a joke as the man was wrestled to the ground by security guards.”

James noted, “Charles has also been pelted by eggs since becoming king and neither event seemed to raise as much as a royal eyebrow, making it totally unlikely that he would bother to make any form of body language response to these banners of protest that were held up in Milton Keynes.”

The expert quipped, “The only thing that has visibly rattled Charles recently has been leaky pens, anything else he seems more than able to ignore.”

Charles inherited queen’s stoicism, expert says

The body language expert said Charles appeared to block out the signs. “Did he even see these signs? He probably did but he switched on a form of tunnel vision, focusing instead on the smiling fans waiting with outstretched hands in front of them,” James said. “Royals always tend to keep their eye-line level with the people at the front of the crowds when they are pressing the flesh, so this behavior would not look out of the ordinary at all.”

James further explained why Charles ignores these kinds of attention-grabbing incidents. “Showing a response can encourage these types of protest behaviors and the fact the ‘Not My King’ signs were identical would have told him they were the work of one small group of people rather than a sign of any general change of mood in the country as a whole,” she explained.

She added, “Charles has stoicism in his DNA, thanks to his mother the late queen, enabling him to perform a perfect ‘ignore.’”

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King Charles gave a heartfelt speech later

James also told woman&home that the incident gave Charles’ heartfelt speech later that day more warmth.

“If anything, Charles seemed to add an even warmer smile to his speech, which was delivered with no suggestion of having been rattled,” James pointed out.

During his speech he noted, “As you mark your well-deserved status as one of England’s newest cities, I can only offer my heartfelt congratulations and my very best wishes for the future.”

Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.