King Charles’ ‘frustration’ at leaving behind stand-up comedy from 59 years ago revealed

Over the years, we’ve learned a lot about King Charles’ many passions, whether that’s the unconventional hobby of beekeeping that he shares with his daughter-in-law, the Princess of Wales, or his persistent determination when it comes to issues of environmental protection and preservation.

However, one of the 77-year-old’s secret hobbies has been unearthed, and it’s one that he got stuck into when he was studying for his history degree at the University of Cambridge, where he enrolled in 1967.

In a new episode of ITV’s Talking Royals podcast, the hosts discussed how the son of Queen Elizabeth II had a knack for entertaining when he was studying. 

One royal expert explained how his “sense of humour” is often forgotten by younger generations, before showcasing a clip from one of King Charles’ stand-up comedy sketches, where he is struggling to play bagpipes, filmed during his time at university.

The host asked, jokingly: “Is he a frustrated actor?”, to which the royal expert replied: “I don’t think he’s frustrated, he loves it. He loves playing to the gallery. He is an entertainer, there’s no doubt about that, he loves comedians,” mentioning the King’s friendships with Billy Connolly and the late Spike Milligan. “He’s a good mimic, he’s very funny, and very down-to-earth, actually,” he continued. 

It seems that this sense of humour has been carried through to the present, as English broadcaster and entrepreneur Sarah Beeny exclusively told HELLO! at the time of the premiere for the King’s new Amazon Prime documentary, Finding Harmony: A King’s Vision.

She revealed to us, about the side of the King on display in the series: “I don’t feel like we get to see him like this usually, to see his personality. He’s so funny. When I’ve met him, I’ve always found him to be just like this; he’s such a warm and funny man and it’s not always what you see or what people expect.”

King Charles’ hobby he shares with Princess Kate

Given that they both share a love of the outdoors, it’s no surprise that King Charles and the Princess of Wales also share a love of beekeeping!

The King’s private residence of Highgrove House features an immense wildflower meadow that has more than 120 different species of plants and 30 beehives. He also has beehives at Clarence House and Buckingham Palace, with a report in The Independent stating that each contains an estimated 20,000 bees.