Here is how Wikipedia purports it:
He is alleged to have been sitting under cover from the heavy rain with Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent at the Coronation in London in 1953. Opposite them was the vast Queen Salote of Tonga. Princess Marina is supposed to have asked "Noel, who is that little man sheltering under Queen Salote's umbrella?" Coward is said to have peered through the rain and said "Oh, her lunch, my dear." In a later interview with Walter Harris, Coward revealed it had been said by someone at White's Club and was immediately attributed to Coward. "It was very flattering of course, except that I had intended to visit Tonga the following winter, and after that of course it was quite impossible."
But I want to draw to your attention something that you may or may not have heard of. Queen Salote became so popular after that Coronation that the famous Edmundo Ros and his orchestra composed a hit song about her. You may want to get your maracas and flower crowns out to listen to it.
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