WRONG TONE

TONY Blair turned his back on royal protocol yesterday when he stormed past the Queen at the end of the annual Braemar Gathering.

The strain of the Hutton inquiry was etched all over Blair's face as he left the event looking far from happy.

First he marched down the walkway from the Royal pavilion to the waiting cars, pushing wife Cherie out of the way.

Then he breached protocol by passing the Queen and walking in front of her to the fleet of cars which took the party the eight miles back to Balmoral.

One onlooker said: "It was clear he didn't want to be there any longer, he was making it perfectly obvious he'd had enough.

"When it was time to go he just couldn't get away quick enough."

The day looked to be going well for the Blairs when they arrived at the Highland games grinning broadly.

The couple held hands as they got out of their official car and walked the short distance to their seats.

But within minutes the Prime Minister was booed by a small section of the 18,000 crowd who were standing near to the Royal Enclosure at the traditional event.

In an ironic reversal of popularity it was the Queen and Prince Philip who received the loudest cheers of the day when they emerged from their car.

The Prime Minister traditionally spends a weekend with the Queen during her summer break at Balmoral, but the Blairs are the only political couple to have managed to elicit an invitation to Braemar.

They arrived at the 55,000 Balmoral Estate in an RAF helicopter just before lunch.

Cherie was dressed in a Japanese- style light-blue trouser suit with long jacket while her husband went for the casual look with a tweed jacket and moss green casual trousers.

The Queen dressed in a lemon and primrose checked skirt suit and matching hat was smiling happily as she and a kilted Prince Philip were warmly applauded.

The day did not improve for Mr Blair when he was snubbed by a young girl presenting the Queen with a posy.

Firts the Queen asked the 12-year-old from Braemar if she had had any success in the dancing competitions. "When I told her I had not won anything, she replied 'Not Yet'," said Erin afterwards.

However, little Erin, who lives in Braemar which has a long history of supporting the Royal Family, remained in an unforgiving mood.

She said: "I like the Queen. She looked lovely and she smiled at me. But I don't like Tony Blair. He is not a very nice man."

And later a man was arrested after a security scare at the event.

Police said a 35-year-old man was detained as he approached a pavilion and private enclosure at the Braemar Gathering in Aberdeenshire from where the Queen, Duke of Edinburgh, Mr Blair and his wife Cherie were watching.

Police say a man will appear in court on Monday.

But a beautiful day of bright sunshine and warm temperatures ensured there was a great attendance of more than 18,000 at the event.

There have been fears in recent years that Billy Connolly's patronage of the Lonach Gathering, which is held just before, is pulling the crowds away from Braemar.

The event was established in 1832 and received Royal approval from Queen Victoria in 1848 - a trend which has continued ever since.

Event secretary Willie Meston said: "It's one of the few opportunities the people have of seeing any members of the Royal Family."

Asked if Mr Blair had breached protocol, a Downing Street spokesman said last night: "I've no idea. I wasn't there."

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