‘He’s got the moves’: King Charles becomes the king of cringe as he dad-dances in public in a Royal first we wish we could unsee

Few things in life are more embarrassing than when a rhythmically challenged dad dances up a storm, whether it’s Jeff from accounting or the King of England himself. King Charles III showed off his (lack of) dance moves recently, and the whole U.K. collectively cringed. We will, however, begrudgingly give him some points for trying.

At a reception at the St. James Palace in London, the king was invited to dance by famous former rugby player Freddie Tuilagi, who is the Honorary Consul for Samoa. The event was a celebration of the Commonwealth Diaspora.

At 75 years old, the King didn’t do any backflips, but he seemed to enjoy himself while letting loose in front of the shirtless Tuilagi. The Samoan was enthusiastic and his charm apparently so great that King Charles couldn’t quite help himself.

Charles did his own version of the dance, mimicking the hand movements, swaying along, and even using some props for the occasion. It gave a lot of drunk-dad-at-a-wedding vibes, which, while cringe-worthy, was also a side of him we don’t see very often.

When asked about the impromptu dance, Tuilagi said that the king really enjoyed himself. “He said he loved it, he loved it. They were good moves, he had good moves,” Tuilagi said. The event itself was a ramp-up to the king’s international tour to Samoa and Australia.

“The King is going to Samoa and so we gave him a bit of a taste of Samoa man, dancing, man,” Tuilagi said. “I said to King I’m going to do it for you when you get to Samoa you experience it.”

The King was flanked by his wife, Queen Camilla, as well as the Duchess of Edinburgh and the Duke of Kent, so maybe he felt comfortable enough to let his hair down, so to speak. Look, not everyone was going to be a fan and we know that.

No one was expecting him to be the next Raygun.

The feedback wasn’t all bad though. Most people are in the “you tried!” category.

It’s not so easy getting out of your comfort zone no matter who you are.

Others don’t really see it that way at all.

Not really sure how that last one equates but maybe this person has some information the rest of us do not. Regardless, King Charles III and his wife will be on their tour of the Commonwealth from Oct. 18 to Oct. 26.