Jill Biden Talks Surfboards, Ocean Therapy on Sidelines of G7 Summit, Meets With Queen Elizabeth on Sunday

Rosemary Feitelberg and Samantha Conti
·4 min read

After the G7 summit officially wrapped up Sunday in Cornwall, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden had one more pressing commitment — an audience with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle. The occasion made Biden the 13th sitting U.S. president whom the Queen has met, and the fourth to take a meeting at Windsor Castle, where the Queen has been living since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Windsor was also where Prince Philip’s funeral took place in April.

Dressed to impress, the president wore a dark suit and FLOTUS turned up in a powder blue suit dress with a coordinating blazer and a brooch on the lapel. After arriving in a Range Rover, the first couple chatted with the Queen. The president wore his signature aviator sunglasses for the first few minutes.

More from WWD

During the visit, Biden inspected the Guard of Honour, the British Army’s most senior regiment of Foot Guards. Following a Royal Salute, the Guard of Honour played the U.S. national anthem.

Afterward, the couple joined the Queen, who was decked in a pink flowered dress by Stewart Parvin, in the Windsor State Apartments where they had tea, sandwiches and cake, with the Queen pouring the tea herself, according to British press reports.

The appointment at Windsor capped the Bidens’ visit to the U.K. for the G7 summit in Cornwall, which wrapped earlier on Sunday. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said G7 nations were pledging one billion COVID-19 vaccine doses for poorer nations, and working toward achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, at the very latest.

This week the Bidens will fly to Brussels and later to Geneva for talks with NATO leaders, and with the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Biden will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 16, their first meeting since Biden took office earlier this year.

While the president and other world leaders discussed climate change, trade, cybersecurity, China and other key issues over the last few days in Cornwall, FLOTUS had her own agenda to tend to off-site.

Veterans, military families and the importance of early education were three of the issues FLOTUS focused on during her appearances around the G7 Summit and her first official trip abroad in her new role. After Sunday’s meeting with Queen Elizabeth, Jill Biden planned to meet with U.K. veterans, who took part in Walk of America, a 1,000-mile trek across the U.S. for which she served as patron. FLOTUS, whose father and stepson served in the U.S. military, addressed military families upon arrival in the U.K. last week.

Sitting down with representatives from the Bude Surf Veterans, a volunteer organization that provides social support and surfing excursions for veterans, at an outdoor picnic table Saturday at the Newlyn Art Gallery, the first lady introduced herself, “‘So, I’m Jill,’” before discussing the therapeutic benefits of the ocean, as well as other non-traditional ways to help veterans. Biden, who spent her 70th birthday earlier this month at the first family’s beach house in Delaware, mentioned that she has a white surfboard with a butterfly on it. Chatting about different countries, Biden mentioned to Saturday’s group that Australia and New Zealand are two countries she has yet to visit.

“I feel like I’m a partner on this journey of healing, bringing together and unity,” Biden told a pool reporter from “PBS NewsHour” Saturday. “It’s a global, [thing] right. It’s a global kind of thing, and that’s what I hear from the other spouses as well.”

A lifelong educator, who has a summer break from her English professor post at Northern Virginia Community College, Biden and her team have opted thus far not to speak publicly about her fashion choices. Despite that, the power of appearance to deliver a message appears to have been given a considerable amount of attention, as evidenced by FLOTUS’ three wardrobe changes on Friday. Even without mentioning fashion, the first lady has been giving American designers Gabriela Hearst, Brandon Maxwell and Michael Kors global attention at key G7 appearances. While Joe Biden’s next orders of business includes a meeting with Vladimir Putin, the first lady is scheduled to depart for the U.S. Sunday night.

Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris showed allegiance for New York-based designer Prabal Gurung, by sporting a crepe de chine blazer and T-shirt imprinted with “LOVE IS LOVE” from his collection to march in Saturday’s LGBTQ Pride parade in Washington, D.C.

Best of WWD

Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest Stories

  • Butler Hall Capital urges Vanda to engage in sales discussions

    On April 17, Vanda rejected a takeover proposal from Future Pak and adopted a shareholder rights plan to reduce the likelihood of a hostile takeover. Vanda had said Future Pak, a privately held contract manufacturer and packager of pharmaceutical products, had made an offer of $7.25 to $7.75 per share in cash, which significantly undervalued the company and was not in the shareholders' best interest.

  • Canadian influencer Sarah DeMelo says 'cancer really does change your life' as she marks 1 year since diagnosis

    A year after her cancer diagnosis, Sarah DeMelo has a "whole new outlook" on life, she says.

  • Irish premier ‘eager to be in a position to apologise’ over Stardust tragedy

    Simon Harris said he hopes to meet with the families on Saturday.

  • BNSF Railway says it didn't know about asbestos that's killed hundreds in Montana town

    HELENA, Mont. (AP) — BNSF Railway attorneys are expected to argue before jurors Friday that the railroad should not be held liable for the lung cancer deaths of two former residents of an asbestos-contaminated Montana town, one of the deadliest sites in the federal Superfund pollution program. Attorneys for the company say the corporate predecessors of the railroad, owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate, didn't know the vermiculite they hauled over decades from a nearby mine

  • IMF urges Bank of Japan to tread cautiously in raising interest rates

    The Bank of Japan (BOJ) must tread cautiously in raising interest rates, as some indicators of inflation expectations remain short of its 2% target, the International Monetary Fund's Japan mission chief Nada Choueiri said on Friday. Choueiri told Reuters that a weak yen had a net-positive impact on Japan's economic growth, and signaled the IMF's preference for the country to allow exchange rates to move flexibly.

  • A first for state water board: Probation for Tulare Lake subbasin, will require pump flow meters

    Water board member said the move was needed because “we don’t have a choice.”

  • Short sellers recoup losses as rally in US stocks loses steam

    Short sellers have been raking it in over the last 30 days as receding bets of an early interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve triggered a selloff in the equity market. Traders have made a mark-to-market profit of more than $25 billion up to Thursday from covering their short positions, said Ihor Dusaniwsky, managing director of predictive analytics at S3 Partners, more than erasing their $14.8 billion in losses so far this year. The current weakness in the market allows them to cover a portion of those heavy losses.

  • Biden administration restricts oil and gas leasing in 13 million acres of Alaska's petroleum reserve

    JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Biden administration said Friday it will restrict new oil and gas leasing on 13 million acres (5.3 million hectares) of a federal petroleum reserve in Alaska to help protect wildlife such as caribou and polar bears as the Arctic continues to warm. The decision — part of a yearslong fight over whether and how to develop the vast oil resources in the state — finalizes protections first proposed last year as the Democratic administration prepared to approve the contentious

  • US House pushes ahead with $95bn foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan

    Coalition of lawmakers helped legislation clear procedural hurdle to reach final votes, following opposition from rightwing Republicans

  • Apple pulls WhatsApp and Threads from App Store on Beijing's orders

    HONG KONG (AP) — Apple said it had removed Meta’s WhatsApp messaging app and its Threads social media app from the App Store in China to comply with orders from Chinese authorities. The apps were removed from the store on Friday after Chinese officials cited unspecified national security concerns. Their removal comes amid elevated tensions between the U.S. and China over trade, technology and national security. The U.S. has threatened to ban TikTok over national security concerns. But while TikT

  • Premiers want return to co-operation with federal government with new budget

    OTTAWA — Canada's premiers are warning the federal government not to overreach into their jurisdictions when it comes to delivering the programs laid out in Ottawa's latest budget. In a letter responding to the Liberals' budget, the premiers say they worry new federal programs are eventually going to be downloaded onto provinces and territories. They also say the housing crisis cannot be solved by the federal government working with municipalities alone. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he wou

  • GB News to axe 40 jobs weeks after revealing heavy losses

    GB News is to cut 40 jobs as the opinionated broadcaster battles to stem losses.

  • Who was Clara Bow? The original 'it girl' who inspired Taylor Swift's new song

    Taylor Swift's latest album has been out for less than a day - but fans and critics alike are already deep into decoding the meaning of her somewhat cryptic lyrics. The pop icon's mammoth project, The Tortured Poets Department, ended up being a secret double album, with the first part ending on a track simply titled Clara Bow. American actress Clara Bow was one of the most successful film stars of the silent era and became the original "it girl" after starring in the 1927 hit film, It.

  • What's Ryan Garcia really selling us with his erratic behavior ahead of his fight vs. Devin Haney?

    The central question clouding Ryan Garcia's fight with Devin Haney is whether Garcia should really be put into a professional boxing match right now?

  • Debate over tight end value hovers over Brock Bowers' draft prospects

    Evaluating Brock Bowers the player is a fairly straightforward assignment. As he showed in three seasons at Georgia, Bowers is a dynamic receiver with the ability to create separation, make contested catches and create big plays after the catch, along with being a more than capable blocker. Bowers is widely considered one of the top 10 players in next week's NFL draft but because he plays the lower-premium position of tight end, there is much more uncertainty about how high he will get drafted.

  • Muted Iranian reaction to attack provides short-term wins for Netanyahu

    Israeli prime minister’s main concern is his political survival but a multi-front war is still a strong possibility

  • Hall in Maxwell bustling with bowling and other gatherings

    While rentals were down slightly because of repairs done, there is strong community interest in the hall, the yearly report from the Maxwell Hall board said. With the bowling league, senior group and rentals, there were about 222 days with usage said the report, received by council on April 3. Maxwell hall under its Memorandum of Under­standing with the municipality sets its own rates, Coun. Nadia Dubyk noted, so they are different than the other standard rates. The revenue stays with the Maxwel

  • Mounties awarded 8 per cent salary increase over 2 years

    Unionized RCMP officers are set to get a raise.An arbitration decision this week awards an eight per cent increase over two years. The decision awards a four per cent increase retroactive to April 1, 2023, and another four per cent as of April 1 this year. The increase will affect about 20,000 RCMP members across the country from constable to staff sergeant major represented by the National Police Federation.Martin Potvin, a spokesperson for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, said in an e

  • Equities platform Midas raises $45M Series A as fintech retains its sparkle in Turkey

    Midas, a fintech startup that allows people in Turkey to invest in U.S. and Turkish equities, says it has raised $45 million in a funding round led by Portage Ventures of Canada. The startup is aimed at Turkey’s retail investor market and claims to have more than 2 million users.

  • Caitlin Clark's WNBA salary showcases wage gap in pro sports

    The University of Iowa college basketball star Caitlin Clark entered the WNBA draft and was picked up as the number one overall pick by the Indiana Fever. Clark led the Iowa Hawkeyes through the March Madness tournament all the way to the finals, ultimately losing to South Carolina. Clark's rookie contract of $338,056 over the next four years further illustrates the monumental pay disparities between men's and women's professional sports. Yahoo Finance's Seana Smith joins Wealth! to compare Clark's rookie compensation package with that of her male counterparts, including the number one NBA draft pick Victor Wembanyama who will be paid a whopping $12 million for his first year in the league. For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Wealth! This post was written by Luke Carberry Mogan.