Dame Joan Collins praises Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte’s “polite” manners after awkwardly forgetting royal protocol during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations
Dame Joan Collins has praised the “courtesy” of Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte after she awkwardly forgot royal protocol during a platinum jubilee celebration.
The 90-year-old Dynasty actress detailed her meeting with members of the royal family in her new memoir, “Behind the Shoulder Pads: Takes I Tell My Friends.”
The star, who received an OBE in 1997, was made a dame by the late Queen in 2015 in recognition of her charity work.
As a result, Joan was invited to take part in the motorcade along the Mall to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June 2022.
She was joined by Great British Bake Off’s Prue Leith and former model Twiggy for the ‘Dames in Their Jags’ portion of the beauty pageant.
Pictured: Actors Joan Collins and Richard E. Grant speak to the Princess of Wales during the Dramatic Arts reception at Buckingham Palace in February 2014
After driving down the famous London street in a vintage car with her husband Percy Gibson, the star was greeted by members of the royal family.
She explained: “Eventually we arrived at the Royal Box, which was full of royals and relatives of the Queen.”
“As we got out of the Jaguar, trying to look presentable after two hours in the freezing wind, Princess Beatrice and her husband Edoardo waved excitedly.”
The star said that King Charles – who was then Prince of Wales – also smiled and waved at them after Princess Anne alerted her to the actress’ presence.
The actress then enjoyed a cup of tea in the private room behind the Royal Box, which was built next to Buckingham Palace.
After she “collapsed” on the sofa, the then Duchess of Cambridge came in with her two eldest children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, says Joan.
Describing their exchange in detail, the actress said the Princess of Wales greeted her “sweetly” by name and extended her hand for a handshake.
Surprised by the Princess’s unexpected arrival, Joan completely forgot the usual protocol for greeting a member of the royal family.
The Prince and Princess of Wales with Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte during the Trooping the Color celebrations in June
Pictured: Joan Collins and husband Percy Gibson during the ‘Dames in Their Jags’ portion of the beauty pageant last year
She wrote: “‘Hello ma’am,’ I gulped and forgot to curtsy.”
Joan recalled how the princess – who was a “vision in a red dress” that day – then introduced Charlotte and Louis by their first names.
Joan praised the children’s excellent manners and added: “Both little people politely held out their little hands for a handshake.”
The following day, Prince Louis delighted fans with his very lively performance during the Platinum Anniversary Concert, which saw artists such as Queen, Elbow and Lin-Manuel Miranda perform outside Buckingham Palace.
During the show, Louis could be seen clenching his fists, sticking out his tongue, waving his arms in the air, putting his hands over his mother’s mouth and standing in his seat to better view the spectacle.
Prince Louis delighted royal fans with his very lively performance during the Platinum Jubilee concert last June
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday last month, the veteran actress – who will play Wallis Simpson in an upcoming biopic – was full of praise for the Princess of Wales.
“Catherine never makes a mistake,” she said. “Meghan isn’t really in my consciousness.”
Elsewhere in her memoir, Joan reportedly calls out Harry Styles after an incident at the Met Gala in 2019.
According to the icon, the brawl occurred as the 29-year-old singer continued dancing and singing to Cher, 77, who was performing on stage at the fashion event.
She remembered attending the big soirée for the first time and Harry kept blocking her view during Cher’s performance.
In her book she wrote: “Harry Styles jumped on the table in front of us.” [those sitting on her table]which blocked our view and ignored our pleas to “get down, we can’t see.”