King Charles III kicked off his 78th birthday with a special tribute from his son Prince William and wife Princess Kate Middleton — with a subtle assist from Sir Elton John.
“With a very happy birthday to His Majesty The King,” William and Kate, both 44, wrote via Instagram Stories on Saturday, November 14.
The Prince and Princess of Wales also reposted the official Royal Family account’s birthday message.
“Happy Birthday to His Majesty The King! 🎊🎂,” a caption read, alongside a photo of Charles posing with the “Rocket Man” singer, 79. “Tune in to a special edition of @EltonJohn’s Rocket Hour to celebrate 50 years of @KingsTrust, from 9am GMT today on @AppleMusic.”
John responded in the comments section, writing, “Happy Birthday to His Majesty!”
The accomplished singer and Charles secretly filmed an episode of John’s radio show at Apple Music’s recording studio in October.
“Hi, I’m Elton John and welcome to my ‘Rocket Hour,’” he began in a teaser clip for the podcast episode. “This week, I have a special guest, and I really mean a special guest. I’m so excited to hear what he’s going to say about music, about the King’s Trust [his eponymous nonprofit] and memories that we both share.”
John, who was knighted in 1998 by the regent’s late mother Queen Elizabeth II, has a long history with Charles and the royal family.
“You’ve informed me of things that I didn’t know, and it’s reaffirmed in my mind what a great and wonderful thing you set up with the Prince’s Trust years ago and continue to do on a daily basis these days,” John told the monarch during the episode. “Championing young people is something I know you’ve always loved to do in your life anyway, but for the arts and music, it’s really important.”
John added, “The fact that you’ve done this and you continue to do it is an incredible feather in your cap, and I congratulate you.”
Charles was grateful for John’s kind words.
“We are so richly blessed with the talents of our musicians, singers and performers, particularly yourself, if I may say so,” Charles noted. “You’ve become such a national treasure after all these years of everything you’ve done for so many people.”
After John subsequently joked he would appear on Antiques Roadshow next in an apparent self-aware quip about his age, Charles added with a laugh, “Well, anyway, join the club.”
Sharing a clip to Facebook, John opened up about welcoming the king to his eponymous show.
“It was a great privilege to welcome The King to my Rocket Hour show, marking the 50th anniversary of The King’s Trust which has transformed the lives of countless young people,” a caption read.
