When you’re sovereign of the British Isles and head of state to 15 nations around the world, there’s probably not a lot of cause to be starstruck. That seems true of King Charles, anyway, as he proved to be A-OK asking his favorite pop superstars for selfies when he first encountered Katy Perry, which marked the beginning of a surprisingly enduring partnership.
Although not two people you would expect to appear on red carpets together, King Charles and Katy Perry have an unexpectedly long history. Most recently, the “Woman’s World” singer was one of many major stars to perform at his coronation concert in May 2023. In February 2020, the pair crossed paths for the second time when Perry earned herself a thoroughly unexpected royal accolade (more on that in a moment).
The first time the then-Prince of Wales and the princess of pop met, however, occurred during a function in Mumbai in 2019 — when Charles broke protocol to procure a coveted selfie with the star.
King Charles showed how much he cared when he asked Katy Perry for a sneaky selfie
Back when Perry was announced to be performing at King Charles’ coronation concert, his former private secretary revealed the touching thing the future monarch had done for him. Scott Furssedonn-Wood tweeted that he was bowled over when Katy Perry showed up at the aforementioned event in Mumbai and confessed to Charles that his kids were big fans.
Although it was apparently against protocol for royal staff to ask famous people for selfies themselves, Charles took it upon himself to approach Perry and ask her for a photo on his secretary’s behalf. “He and his family are such fans!” Charles told the singer. Furssedonn-Wood described the move as a “kindly” gesture, as well as posting the selfie that came from Charles’ act.
It seems Charles has a soft spot for the “California Gurls” icon himself, though. On top of performing at his coronation concert, Perry and Charles reunited in 2020 when Perry was appointed ambassador for the British Asian Trust. The appointment was widely viewed as rather nonsensical, considering that Perry is a) not British and b) not Asian.
The British Asian Trust is a charity set up by Charles himself in 2007 to combat poverty in South Asia. Over time, many famous people have been appointed ambassadors for the charity — including former One Direction member Zayn Malik — but Perry is one of the few to hold neither British nor Asian heritage. Did Charles pull some strings to land Perry the honor behind the scenes? We can’t be certain that the king didn’t get himself a selfie at the same time as his secretary.
I’m sorry, Your Majesty, your secret is out. When no one else is about, he dances to “Roar” around Buckingham Palace like Hugh Grant does through 10 Downing Street in Love Actually. Mark my words, Prince Harry’s going to devote a whole chapter to it when he finally gets around to writing a Spare sequel.