Hayrunnisa Gul`shoes astonished the Queen.

As the Queen greeted the first lady of Turkey yesterday, she couldn't help an admonishing glance at her guest's six-inch platform shoes.

Hayrunnisa Gul, wife of Turkey's president, tottered gingerly on to the red carpet as she and her husband arrived for lunch at Buckingham Palace. The Queen, in her usual sensible court shoes, appeared somewhat taken aback by her glamorous guest's footwear.

Maybe she was worried about Mrs Gul tripping up on the carpet. Or fretting how she would manage all the stairs in the palace, which has few lifts. No matter. Mrs Gul is something of a stilleto expert. In September she braved the cobbles at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate in five-inch heels and October saw her treading carefully in six-inch platforms at the presidential palace in Ankara.

Despite a rather wobbly beginning, she put her best foot forward and enjoyed the best of royal hospitality at the palace. After lunch the Queen treated the Guls to an exhibition of Turkish themed antiquities, MailOnline writes.