Trudeau seen singing with renowned Quebec musician days before queen’s funeral – National

A video of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau singing at a gathering in London, England, on Saturday – days before Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral – has sparked debate on social media.

In the video, Trudeau can be seen singing the Queen song Bohemian Rhapsody a musician from Quebec, Gregory Charles plays the piano. Charles is a member of the Canadian delegation and walked in the Queen’s funeral procession on Monday.

The clip was shared on Twitter, where it received over 500,000 views. It is unclear who shot the video.

The prime minister’s office confirmed the video in a statement to Global News on Monday.

“After dinner on Saturday, (the) Prime Minister attended a small gathering with members of the Canadian delegation who have come together to pay tribute to Her Majesty’s life and service,” said a spokesman for the Prime Minister.

“Gregory Charles, a renowned Quebec musician and recipient of the Order of Canada, was playing the piano in the hotel lobby, which led to some members of the delegation, including the Prime Minister, arriving.”

The spokesman added that “over the past 10 days, the Prime Minister has taken part in various activities to pay his respects to the Queen”.

The Twitter user who posted the now viral tweet said the video was from “last night at the Savoy”. While the tweet was sent late Sunday evening Eastern time, it was already Monday in the UK. Many of those who replied to and shared the video wrongly assumed the video was from the night before Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral – as opposed to Saturday night when it was actually filmed.

The tweet also reported the wrong location of the gathering. The event happened in the lobby of the Hotel Corinthia London, not the Savoy as claimed by the user.

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Trudeaus depart for Queen Elizabeth’s funeral

Still, the video sparked heated debate among some social media users about whether the prime minister acted appropriately.

“He couldn’t just pretend to care for a few hours in public.” replied one userwho received over 400 likes for the comment.

another user, with over 100 likes on her answerShe repeated the false claim that the video was from the night before the funeral.

“This is inappropriate on the eve of the Queen’s funeral in the UK. I live in the UK, believe me he’s not going to do well here,” they said.

However, other users came to the Prime Minister’s defense. Some falsely claiming the footage must be out of dateas they believed Trudeau’s hair – which was recently cut – appeared longer in the video.

said another user They “never understood how to be bothered by politicians who are humane and fun.”

As debate continues on social media, the day’s celebratory events in London continue.

The Prime Minister’s spokesman said that on Monday “the entire delegation will attend the state funeral”.