BRITISH beef was definitely not on the menu for the President's "historic" lunch at Downing Street yesterday, despite Irish Government sources proclaiming that it would "not have been a problem".
Instead Mrs Robinson and about 60 guests dined on Scottish salmon, guinea fowl and raspberry terrine. After the two hour lunch Mr John Major described Mrs Robinson's four day official visit to Britain as a "historic occasion" which he hoped would be repeated many times in the future. However, the Prime Minister added that Queen Elizabeth would "not yet" be visiting Ireland.
"We have had the opportunity to have a look at a whole range of things this morning, but I think what struck both of us in our discussions is the extent of the changing relationship.
"We have spent a large part of the last century, the United Kingdom and Ireland, parading first our differences and then our agreements, and yet there is a much closer relationship between Ireland and the United Kingdom than most people can appreciate," he said.
Mrs Robinson echoed this sentiment and pointed out that there were more Irish people living in Britain than in Ireland. "Because in all the complexity of the relations between our two countries and our two peoples, we need to take stock of just how much there is in common and what we share in a special relationship," she said.
Although the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, the Rev Ian Paisley, rejected an invitation to the luncheon, dismissing it as a "love in", other political leaders were pleased to accept. Guests included the Ulster Unionist Party leader, Mr David Trimble, the SDLP leader, Mr John Hume, and the Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary, Dr Marjorie Mowlam.
Other guests included the Catholic Primate, Cardinal Cahal Daly, the head of the Catholic Church in Britain, Cardinal Basil Hume, and the former Irish international soccer manager, Jack Charlton.
Before lunch the President, accompanied by the Tanaiste, Mr Spring, and the Irish Ambassador, Mr Ted Barrington, enjoyed the June sunshine in the Downing Street garden while having "half an hour of positive talks" with Mr Major.
Perhaps surprisingly, given the historic nature of the President's visit to Britain, the English media have largely ignored it, preferring instead to speculate about her credentials for the position of UN Secretary General.
At a brief and unscheduled press conference, Mrs Robinson expressed her surprise at the coverage, but refused to say if she would accept the UN position if offered it. "I have been trying hard to dampen down the discussion about it and I find I am only adding to it if I say anything, so I don't think I will," she insisted.
Earlier the Northern Ireland Secretary, Sir Patrick Mayhew, and Lady Mayhew visited Mrs Robinson in her suite in the Dorchester Hotel in Park Lane. As the champagne cooled in the ice bucket and the chocolate biscuits began to melt, they posed for "in formal" photographs and made small talk about the weather.
After their 30 minute meeting, Sir Patrick described the President's visit as "a very good initiative and very valuable" and said he hoped it would not be too long before the queen could visit Ireland.
"These things have to be carefully planned and the time has to be right. I hope the time won't be long distant," he said. "But I have no inside information," he hastily added, laughing.
To the delight of the small, mainly Irish, congregation at Westminster Cathedral early yesterday morning, the President visited St Patrick's Chapel to lay a signed wreath in memory of the 50,000 Irish soliders who died in the first World War.
Mrs Robinson examined the plaques commemorating the 17 Irish regiments which fought in the war before she laid the wreath in front of a gold statue of St Patrick.
As Cardinal Hume greeted the President, who was accompanied by her husband, Nicholas, and the Tanaiste, on the steps of the Cathedral, the small crowd captured the moment on film. "Ooh, isn't she lovely, much better than Margaret Thatcher," said Ms Maureen McCluskey (71), from London. "But who is that man with her? Is he important? I know he has been talking to the Prime Minister all night."