Take Out An Onion Meaning

(idiomatic) Suggests that the performer of the action is not sincere in their grief.

Example: 2010 August 6, Jonathan Wheatley, "Brazil’s TV debate: ports, rates and Lula’s shadow", The Financial Times
  He’s almost taking out an onion now as he remembers his father and his own early struggles.
2011 December 11, DJ Taylor, "Clichés - We're all in them together", The Independent
  "I don't want the next generation to misunderstand history" Mr Chea told a packed court, no doubt taking out an onion as he did so. "I don't want them to believe the Khmer Rouge were bad people, war criminals."
2012 January 21, Andrew Gilligan, "Ken Livingstone: new health concerns as multiple personality disorder detected", The Daily Telegraph
  I sympathise, of course, (takes out onion) with Ken’s own experience of how hard it is to find employment, in a particularly tough job market for embittered old lefties.