King Charles was spotted wearing a gift thought to be from Princess Charlotte at Trooping the Colour over the weekend. On Saturday, June 13, Charles and Camilla joined other members of the Royal Family to mark the King's official birthday with the usual pomp and pageantry associated with the annual celebration.
It included a flypast by the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, and the traditional carriage procession, with the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Prince and Princess of Wales also in attendance.
Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte were there too - and Charlotte's presence was notable in more ways than one. As King Charles waved to the crowd, he revealed two colourful accessories on his wrist.
Richard Eden wrote in The Mail: "When King Charles waved to the crowds after an RAF flypast for Trooping the Colour on Saturday, he revealed two colourful string bracelets on his wrist. They are thought to have been gifts from his 11-year-old granddaughter, Princess Charlotte."
As a fan of US pop sensation Taylor Swift, Charlotte has joined other "Swifties" in making personalised friendship bracelets, which fans swap with like-minded concertgoers at gigs. Charlotte even secured the opportunity to meet the Fate of Ophelia hitmaker and her husband-to-be, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, backstage at the Wembley leg of her Eras Tour in 2024.
Charles was also observed directing an unsure Charlotte and young Prince Louis on the Buckingham Palace balcony during the event. Speaking exclusively to us, lip reader Jeremy Freeman shed light on the exchange shared between Charles and Charlotte.
According to Jeremy, Charlotte turned and asked: "Time to wave?" Appearing to address everyone, Charles replied: "Very good. Now we give a wave." He added: "Wave to everyone. Cheerio. That's right, thank you very much."
Meanwhile, Louis was also spotted asking his father: "Is there more?" In response, William instructed his youngest son: "No, that's it. Go on wave, that's it."
Body language expert Judi James also weighed in on the royal balcony appearance. She told The Mirror: "The newly-pared down royal firm we saw on the balcony showed two family 'teams' or units: On one side we had the solid, dependable and unproblematic royal 'rocks' in the shape of Edward, Sophie, Tim and Anne and on the other side of the balcony the tightly choreographed, immaculately stylish and elegant Wales's."
"With no Beatrice or Eugenie, the face of the Firm looked emphatic and undiluted. There was even The Duke of Kent there to symbolise the generation before and maybe show the resilience and stoicism of that generation, as he is still working in his nineties."
