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Margaret Trudeau mimics her late husband's iconic pirouette on Sept. 22, 2010, at a Toronto book launch commemorating the former prime minister. (Moe Doiron/Moe Doiron/The Globe and Mail)
Margaret Trudeau mimics her late husband's iconic pirouette on Sept. 22, 2010, at a Toronto book launch commemorating the former prime minister. (Moe Doiron/Moe Doiron/The Globe and Mail)

Photography

Margaret Trudeau takes an iconic spin of her own Add to ...

That's Margaret Trudeau doing a pirouette - an homage to her late husband. And the guy holding the glass of wine, who is laughing the hardest? That's Doug Ball.

In 1977, Mr. Ball, a Canadian Press photographer, shot Canada's playful prime minister, Pierre Trudeau, pirouetting at Buckingham Palace with the Queen oblivious to his antics. It's an iconic shot.

Thirty-three years later, Mr. Ball is in the picture as Mr. Trudeau's former wife, Margaret, now 62, emulates the famous move. Former CP photographers Fred Chartrand and Peter Bregg are him in the shot taken by The Globe and Mail's Moe Doiron.

The occasion was the launch in Toronto on Wednedsay night of a 188-page book of black and white images of the late prime minister taken by Canadian Press news photographers. It marks the 10th anniversary of Mr. Trudeau's death on Sept. 28, 2000.

The book, Pierre Trudeau: Images of Canada's Passionate Statesman, also includes contributions from his two sons, Justin, now a Montreal Liberal MP, and Alexandre, a filmmaker, who provide written commentary on the images.

Margaret Trudeau attended the launch and stayed (not just to spin) to sign a few books. "It was a great evening," said Mr. Ball, who has described his iconic photo as showing the late prime minister's "maverick anti-conformism" and "disdain for aristocratic pomp."

Mr. Doiron said Mrs. Trudeau spontaneously pirouetted after one of the photographers had taken a spin. "This is what news photographers see in heaven. You shoot a good Trudeau photo and have the three best political photographers looking on without cameras," he joked.

Pierre Trudeau performs his famous pirouette at Buckingham Palace in London on May 7, 1977.

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