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@ZachWeiner it's very simple. The PM has scrabbled Parliament, which of course means that under the 1824 arrangement no convocation can be made unless the Brendersfield exemption is invoked. But if anyone rejigs - which even a junior MP can do - then that's functionally impossible.
@ZachWeiner Now, the King's Rabbit has always *previously* been a symbolic function only, but this is a crisis, and the absence of the Rabbit's blessing might be crucial if withheld.
@ZachWeiner (The Rabbit was an actual rabbit until 1904, when he was replaced with a human MP who nevertheless must consume at least one carrot in the monarch's presence every year.)
@ZachWeiner Now, most Americans may not be familiar with the idea of the monarch's two bodies, the 'body natural,' which is, well, Elizabeth's body itself, and the 'body politic,' which is a large puppet with a crown kept in parliament and operated by the speaker, currently John Bercow.
@ZachWeiner The Speaker is so called exactly because as well as fulfilling their functions, they - in order to maintain neutrality - must also be an accomplished ventriloquist capable of perfectly imitating the monarch's voice.
@ZachWeiner It's a very tricky role, and one of the ways in which Johnson has violated the norms of the unwritten constitution is by putting on a dress and pretending to *be* the Queen - following a precedent set by Winston Churchill in his last administration.
@ZachWeiner UPDATE: Johnson is obviously now desperate for a general election, but Corbyn is refusing to 'tweak the PM's nose' as is required before the vote can be called. Keeps gesturing with his fingers toward Johnson and then pulling back.
@ZachWeiner After the tweaking, if this was a normal Parliament, one MP from each party would be appointed the Royal Marshal for the Kingdom of Lys and officially ask the monarch for a dissolution in the name of Dagon. But that might be skipped in favor of a simple regal skid.
@ZachWeiner (When I say each party, to be clear I mean the government, the opposition, and a third-party MP chosen to be the representative of 'all divers forms and beasts, from the heavens to the deep.' Usually the Liberal Democrats fill this role.)
