British and American royalty united when Barbra Streisand met Queen Elizabeth II at the Royal Film Performance of “Funny Lady” on March 17, 1975. Streisand called on designer Ray Aghayan (1928-2011) to create a lavender velvet cape with Art Nouveau beading down the back for the occasion. ¹ Aghayan had been designing for Barbra since her 1963 appearance on The Judy Garland Show. Alongside his life partner, Bob Mackie, he had recently designed all the costumes for Funny Lady, making him the perfect choice for this regal moment.

Aghayan’s end result was a breathtaking floor-length cape made from crushed velvet velour. It features a dramatic Scottish widow-style hood and a T-shaped panel down the back with Art Nouveau-style embroidery. Matching embroidery runs up the front of the cape and decorates each side of the hood. Swarovski crystals and glass bugle beads accent the embroidery and help give the piece its elegant shimmer. Another lovely detail is the delicate pleating at the shoulder, which helped enhance the cape’s volume and add fluidity.²

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Streisand paired her cape with a matching lavender turban and a plunging long-sleeved dress, accented by a round brooch at the décolleté. On closer inspection, the brooch appears to have etched initials. She also wore white gloves and carried an antique floral needlepoint purse which was similar to the one Queen Elizabeth II carried that evening.

In her autobiography, “My Name is Barbra”, Streisand recalled that while she was honored to meet the Queen, it felt rather demeaning to curtsy to anyone. To lighten the mood and cut through the formality of the occasion, Jon Peters challenged her with a $100 bet to ask why women were required to wear gloves, but men were not. Streisand accepted the challenge and explained: “When the queen and I were finally face to face, I did a kind of curtsy, and said something complimentary (which I’ve of course forgotten). And then I asked, “Why do women have to wear gloves to shake your hand, but not men?’ She looked a bit startled. I doubt she had ever thought about it. She said, “I’ll have to think about that one. I supposed it’s tradition. Then she smiled graciously and turned to her aide, who kind of whisked her away. The next day the picture of us meeting was on the front page of all the English papers, and some mentioned my shocking question. I thought to myself, Why did I do that?  The fact is, I was trying to puncture the formality, with all of us lined up as stiffly as soldiers, and make light of an awkward moment. Well, at least I won the bet.” ³

When watching the moment back in the video below, you can spot Jon Peters and James Caan struggling to hold back laughter as Streisand boldly poses the question to the Queen.

The tradition of Royal Film Performances began in 1946 with King George VI attending the premiere of A Matter of Life and Death. At the time, the event was known as the Royal Command Performance. Queen Elizabeth II attended her first Royal Film Performance shortly before her coronation in 1952, going on to appear at over 30 premieres before passing the honor to other senior members of the royal family. Proceeds from these events support the Film & Television Charity, which provides financial assistance to industry professionals facing hardship. Today, Royal Film Performances are primarily attended by King Charles III and Prince William. ⁴

Streisand’s cape was auctioned in 2004 as part of Julien’s “Her Name is Barbra” sale, where it fetched $2,200 according to LiveAuctioneers’ archives. ⁵ However, the piece has since returned to Streisand’s possession. Today, she proudly displays it in her Malibu home, accompanied by a photograph from the memorable occasion it was worn.

Sources

1. Streisand, Barbra. My Passion for Design. P.210 ↩︎
2. https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/321228_barbra-streisand-london-premiere-cape ↩︎
3. Streisand, Barbra. My Name Is Barbra. Viking, 2023. ↩︎
4. filmtvcharity.org.uk ↩︎
5. https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/321228_barbra-streisand-london-premiere-cape ↩︎