This is probably one of the less surprising rules. When you were at school and the principal walked into assembly, you all stood up until they told you to sit down. If you're in court and the judge enters, everybody rises, and the judge will tell then when it's acceptable to sit back down again. It therefore makes sense that when the Queen of England is standing in your presence, you better get up on your toes sharpish!
Standing before those with greater social status than you has been hardwired into us since we were born, and you see examples of it everywhere. The military is a good example; no Private would dream of sitting on their haunches when a Sergeant entered the room. The good news is that the Queen probably won't leave you on your feet for an extended period of time. She's getting on in years now and would much prefer to be sitting down herself.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.