The image was seen as a classic example of a very British stiff upper lip.

Paris:

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer drew attention Saturday from a viral photo taken at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games that showed him as the only dignitary not wearing a protective plastic poncho during the rain.

Starmer was featured only as a bare-headed figure as other VIPs opted to wrap themselves in plastic handout ponchos to protect themselves from the rain that marred Friday’s opening ceremony on the River Seine.

The photo was widely shared on social media, with users viewing the photo as a perfect example of a very British stiff upper lip during the inclement weather familiar to residents of the famously drizzly country.

“It’s British! We’re used to rain,” Starmer told French channel LCI in an interview.

“But it (the rain) did not dampen spirits,” he added, describing the opening ceremony as a “magnificent” and “magnificent” event that “made full use of the river (and) of Paris.”

Starmer, elected earlier this month in a landslide election victory for the centre-left Labor Party that ended 14 years of right-wing Conservative rule, was making his first official visit to Paris as prime minister.

“Nothing more British than absolutely refusing to wear one of those plastic poncho things,” wrote one user on X, formerly Twitter.

There have been plenty of signs of rain in British politics in recent weeks.

When he announced the general election, former Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Singh was widely mocked for delivering his address in the rain outside 10 Downing Street without a coat or umbrella.

Starmer, however, was wearing a navy blue Team GB rainproof jacket and can be seen using his hood to protect his hair from the rain in other photos.

“Preparation is the key to success,” the Labor Party wrote on X when he posted one of his photos.

(Other than the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

(Tags translation)Keir Starmer(T)Paris Olympics(T)UKPM Keir Starmer



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