King Charles used "rapid hand-flicking" gestures that signalled impatience at his Scottish Coronation, a body language expert has claimed.
Charles was presented with the symbols of his authority in Scotland – the Crown, the Sceptre and the Sword of State – known as the Honours of Scotland during a day of pomp, pageantry and prayer in Edinburgh.
He was joined by his wife, Queen Camilla, as well as the Prince and Princess of Wales for the ceremony at St Giles Cathedral.
The service came eight weeks after Charles and Camilla were crowned in an ancient ceremony at Westminster Abbey, where the King made a pledge to "serve".
According to body language expert Judi James, all four royals appeared much more relaxed than at the service last May - but she noted Charles becoming impatient, especially when he arrived at the Cathedral.
She told the Mirror : "This appeared to be a more relaxed ceremony for Charles, who shared the spotlight almost evenly with Camilla, William and Kate, meaning his body language projected less of the ongoing signals of tension and anxiety than at his actual coronation and he wore a warm, beaming smile most of the time.
"He did appear to fuss and fret over Camilla this time, though, and when he did drop the smile and adopt a wary frown with his signature steepled brows, it was when he was turning back in concern to see her get safely in and out of their car or to move to her seat, which was when he also used some of the rapid hand-flicking gestures that tend to signal royal impatience.
"His concern seemed justified as Camilla did appear nervous. Unlike Kate, she lacked the ability to perform a pose of stillness during the service and her constant patting of her hair or the white plume of her hat were self-checking rituals that hinted at ongoing inner anxiety."
Meanwhile, Judi also noted a difference between Charles and Camilla and William and Kate when the foursome stood outside of the Palace of Holyroodhouse to watch the RAF flypast.
She added: "During the flypast in particular, you could see the contrast in the way William and Kate communicate vs Charles and Camilla.
"The King and Queen are more like a ventriloquist act, both muttering asides to the other in a way that doesn't look like real conversation but the ability to mutter may feel comforting for them both at events like this.
"They often overlap in their speech, which again suggests it's a mutual support and comfort tool rather than a way of conversing verbally. There is no eye contact.
"William and Kate always show signals of attentive listening to each other, and here they did their signature ritual of adding either touch or truncated touch to communicate with both words and non-verbal gestures that show emotion.
"Kate even did her now signature bum-pat gesture and the couple tend to use eye contact and exchange smiles as they speak."
