The Queen Asks Interesting Question During Supermarket Trip
22 May 2019, 14:49 | Updated: 22 May 2019, 15:02
During a visit to a pop-up supermarket, the Queen has asked if customers can trick self-service checkouts to get cheaper shopping.
During the trip to the store in Covent Garden, Her Majesty asked: "And you can't trick it? You can't cheat then?"
A Sainsbury employee replied: "Well, you always can cheat but with the weighing scales we've got that should prevent certain items from being undetected."
The Queen was also shown a new shopping app, which she called "an interesting tool".
The comments were made during a trip to a pop-up exhibition in Covent Garden, central London, which replicated elements from one of Sainsbury's original stores to mark the chain's 150th anniversary.
The supermarket opened its original store in Drury Lane in 1869, selling butter, milk, and cheese.
During her visit, the Queen also got the opportunity to see an original Second World War ration book, and spoke about her own experiences of food shortages.
She said: "As a Sunday treat we had some sweeties, but we were lucky we had a farm."
There was also a demonstration of a shopping basket from the 1950s, containing a herring paste that the Queen labelled as "ghastly".
When the porridge and oranges of six decades ago were contrasted the avocados and ready meals of 2019, she remarked "tastes have changed".
The Queen met staff during her visit, before unveiling a plaque and cutting a cake to commemorate the milestone birthday
They included Damien Corcoran, who showed the Queen the stores' modern technologies, including the till.
A former Army officer, Mr Corcoran said it was a great honour "to have held the Queen's commission and then to have met her in person".
Lord John Sainsbury, life president and former chief executive of the company, greeted the Queen and called her visit "very flattering".
He said: "I'm proud to say that what the company has contributed over the years has made it worthy of it.
"Of course, it's a great compliment."
