A resurfaced clip of Donald Trump getting emotional over the late Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III has gone viral, just as reports swirl that the British monarch is growing “very concerned” about the President’s upcoming state visit.
The footage, originally posted to social media in November as part of Trump’s Art of the Surge documentary, shows the 79-year-old leafing through a personal photo album on board a private jet.
The video was captioned in part, “You can see that he [Trump] truly adored her [the Queen]”.
“Now this is with Queen Elizabeth, who was fantastic by the way,” he said, pointing to an image captured during his first UK state visit in June 2019.
“Who has images like this?” Trump added about himself.
“And these are real relationships too.”
He then paused on a photo featuring King Charles (then the Prince of Wales) standing beside a ceremonial guard.
“Look, he is now the King, here’s Charles with the guard,” Trump said, before shifting back to the late monarch.
“And this is the Queen. Queen Elizabeth. These are pieces of history at the highest level.”
He takes a moment to reflect before quietly adding: “So beautiful.”
The video continues with Trump praising the entire royal family, including Queen Camilla and Charles, noting, “Hopefully he (Charles) is going to be well, because he’s a really good person.”
Interestingly, the remark was made just months before the King publicly revealed a cancer diagnosis, following treatment for an enlarged prostate.
“Camilla is fantastic too,” Trump said.
“I mean, you get to know them so well.”
In another image, Trump is seen in conversation with Queen Elizabeth during a state banquet.
“Here’s your favourite president with the Queen. She was unbelievable. We had a very good relationship. Really good,” he said.
It’s not the first time the former president has publicly expressed admiration for the late monarch.
After her death in September 2022, Trump wrote that he and his wife Melania would “always cherish our time together with the Queen, and never forget Her Majesty’s generous friendship, great wisdom, and wonderful sense of humour.
“What a grand and beautiful lady she was- there was nobody like her!” he added.
“Our thoughts and prayers will remain with the great people of the United Kingdom as you honour her most meaningful life and exceptional service to the people. May God bless the Queen, may she reign forever in our hearts, and may God hold her and Prince Philip in abiding care.”
However, author Craig Brown’s recent royal biography A Voyage Around The Queen paints a less rosy picture, claiming the late monarch found Trump to be “very rude” during his visits to the UK in 2018 and 2019.
Trump dismissed the suggestion during a campaign rally last year.
“I have no idea who the writer is, but it was really just the opposite,” he said of Brown.
“I had a great relationship with the Queen. She liked me, and I liked her.”
Since resurfacing online, the video has sparked widespread commentary, with Trump supporters praising his tribute to the Queen and the British monarchy.
Britain loves the US. I love the respect he showed to our queen & history,” one fan wrote.
Another added: “Can’t wait for you to come in September to GB. Royal Windsor will give you a huge hug! GB loves you Mr President. It wasn’t just our beautiful queen. It was also her people.”
Others were more sceptical, with one user claiming the King “hates Trump’s guts”.
“These pictures are just standard diplomatic photos; hundreds of them exist with hundreds of other leaders over the years,” they said.
Another wrote: “He (Trump)’s crying over his own ego tbh.”
According to The Daily Beast, one person watching the growing hype with some trepidation is King Charles himself.
A palace insider told the outlet on Monday His Majesty is worried Trump “could upend protocol and make politicised comments when delivering a traditional speech at his state banquet.”
Concerns have reportedly been growing since Trump’s recent comments about Canada, a Commonwealth realm where Charles is the head of state, referring to it as “the 51st state”.
But they’ve intensified after a string of inflammatory comments made by the president during his current five-day visit to Scotland.
“On immigration, you’d better get your act together. You’re not going to have Europe anymore,” Trump told reporters on Friday.
The insider added the 76-year-old monarch “will be very concerned about the possibility of a repeat of Trump’s outburst [when he visits] in September.”
The state visit, expected to go ahead on September 17-19, will mark the first time any elected political leader has been invited back for a second royal reception.