[post_page_title]Five minute warning [/post_page_title]
Sometimes, the Queen knows that she’s getting ready to bow out of a conversation but she wants a few more minutes to wrap things up. In that case, she’ll place her handbag on a table, to signal that she wants only five more minutes in her meeting.
It gives her staff time to make the necessary preparations. She might also do this at a dinner, when she’s done eating and is ready to move on to the next thing on her schedule. So if you happen to be dining with Queen Elizabeth and you see her put her bag on the table, you might want to quickly help yourself to some more dessert.
