Penny Mordaunt has spoken about how she took painkillers before carrying the ceremonial sword during King Charles’s coronation. Mordaunt, the lord president of the council, was the first woman to perform this role and was responsible for bearing the sword of the state and presenting the jewelled sword of offering to the king. Mordaunt wore a custom-made teal outfit with a matching cape and headband with gold feather embroidery during the coronation. According to Mordaunt, the coronation was a “humbling day”. Mordaunt’s role as lord president of the privy council requires her to chair meetings of the council, a group of the UK’s most senior politicians charged with presenting business to the king.

Source: The Guardian May 11, 2023 17:24 UTC