King Charles's biggest regret is that he has never visited a Butlin's resort for a holiday, according to a close friend. The revelation emerged following the monarch's 78th birthday celebrations on Saturday, November 14.
Despite having travelled to far-flung destinations across the globe that most people could only dream of, it is the well-known chain of budget holiday resorts that remains firmly on his bucket list. The wish dates back to his childhood, with the friend revealing that he and his sister Princess Anne would beg their parents, the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, to take them. Their pleas, however, always went unanswered.
Friend Recalls Childhood Pleas
The friend told the Sunday Times: "One of the King's funniest stories that he's told a few times – and it's whenever you get him onto his list of regrets of things he hasn't done – that he's never been to Butlin's, and that he and Princess Anne never went as children."
"He asked the Queen and Prince Philip many times if he and Anne could go on holiday to Butlin's as children, and he tells how the Queen would always say: 'I don't quite think we will be able to manage that.'"
"He laughs at how disappointed he was that he and his sister never managed to pull that off as children. He always wanted to go."
Butlin's Responds to the Story
There are currently only three Butlin's resorts remaining in the UK, including the site at Minehead, which is the largest still operating. Further locations can be found in Bognor Regis, West Sussex, and Skegness, Lincolnshire, reports Somerset Live.
In response to the story, a spokesperson for Butlin's said: "We'd like to wish His Majesty a very happy birthday and, as we celebrate our landmark 90th year, help him make a childhood wish come true. His late mother visited Butlin's in 1963, and we'd be delighted to invite the King and his family to visit one of our resorts."
Two Birthdays for the Monarch
Interestingly, the King actually has two birthdays to celebrate throughout the year. While his official birthday falls in November, he also has a second, ceremonial birthday earlier in the year, marked by the Trooping the Colour ceremony in central London each June.
Since 1748, the Trooping the Colour has been designated to commemorate the official birthday of the monarch, and has been an annual fixture since the reign of King George III in 1760. The reason the Trooping the Colour does not take place on the monarch's actual birthday can be traced back to King Edward VII.
He too was born in November, but considered the month too cold for outdoor festivities, and so moved the ceremonial occasion to a warmer, more pleasant time of year. When Prince William eventually accedes to the throne, he may find himself with just one birthday celebration, given that his birthday already falls in June.
