King Charles’ response after ‘excited’ girl breaks royal protocol and seems to flirt

King Charles laughed off a royal protocol blunder during his Grimsby visit, after a Grimsby Town Football Club staff member accidentally called the King “darling” instead of “Your Majesty”

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King Charles was left in stitches after a woman broke royal protocol during his visit to Lincolnshire. The 77-year-old monarch met with staff at Grimsby Town Football Club’s Blundell Park in Cleethorpes, north-east Lincolnshire, on Thursday.

Francine Orr, the ticket office manager for the football club, shared her amusing encounter with the King. She accidentally referred to him as “darling” instead of the customary “Your Majesty” when it was her turn to greet him.

Francine then shared his response to her faux pas. She said: “We were briefed on what we should say and what we shouldn’t say, how we should bow and how we should curtsy. I’ve had it in my brain all morning, then he comes up to me… and he shakes my hand, and I said ‘All right darling, oh no, I’m so sorry Your Majesty’.”

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“He went ‘That’s OK’, and he laughed, and he stood back, and he went ‘I like being called darling’.” She then expressed her delight at meeting the King, adding: “He was so down to earth. Lovely, lovely man. It was so good he’s come to Grimsby to meet everyone at Grimsby Town.”

Earlier that day, the King visited the Horizon Youth Zone state-of-the-art facility in Grimsby, where he was seen engaging with schoolchildren, armed services cadets and members of a scouting group. The King is set to make an appearance in London this weekend for the annual Trooping the Colour on June 13.

The monarch will be accompanied by other senior royals including Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales, and Princess Anne. In addition to Trooping the Colour, the funeral of Lady Pamela Hicks, who sadly passed away earlier this month, is scheduled for tomorrow – it’s currently unclear whether any members of the royal family will be in attendance.