King Charles was joined today by a beaming David Beckham, making his last public appearance before officially becoming Sir David.

The former footballer, who has been widely tipped to be knighted in the King’s Birthday Honours on Saturday, joined His Majesty at St James’ Palace for a star-studded awards ceremony for his King’s Foundation charity.

Other celebrities present included Hollywood legends and Oscar winners Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet, along with presenter Penny Lancaster, Stanley Tucci, chef Raymond Blanc and Alan Titchmarsh.

Happily rubbing shoulders with the A-listers, David, who became an ambassador for the King’s Foundation in 2024, appeared to be in his element as he put on an animated display with American actress Meryl. 

Meanwhile, Charles, 76, proved to be the perfect host as he had the famous faces in fits of giggles as he chatted to those in attendance.

Winslet, described by royal aides as ‘a friend of the foundation’, was overheard telling the King ‘don’t worry, I’ve got your back’.

Royal sources suggested the British actor may bolster her role as a supporter of the charity in the future.

Charles also stopped to greet Lancaster, married to rock star Rod Stewart, with a warm kiss on the cheek. She told the King she had been keeping bees on their Scottish estate.

The King shakes hands with David Beckham next to Penny Lancaster and Meryl Streep

David Beckham, actress Meryl Streep and British actress Kate Winslet meet with the King during the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

Meryl Streep and David Beckham react as they attend the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

Elsewhere, Meryl and David could be seen sharing a grin and a laugh as they lined up to chat with the monarch, alongside British actress Kate, who appeared effortlessly elegant in a cream suit. 

The annual ceremony – which is celebrating the 35th Anniversary of The King’s Foundation this year – was an opportunity to celebrate alumni, students, and ambassadors of the monarch’s charity.

Attended by 200 guests, the awards celebrates the exemplary work of students, teachers, alumni and partners who have contributed to the Foundation’s work across a range of sectors including sustainability, traditional heritage skills and environmental education.

The King met this year’s eight winners as he was heralded as a ‘pioneer and a visionary’ in his crusade to protect traditional crafts and the environment at

The foundation today revealed it has to date trained more than 115,000 students in traditional crafts and environmental education over its 35-year tenure, welcomed more than 2.5million visitors to its UK destinations, and positively affected more than 500,000 lives through sustainable urban planning.

King’s Foundation ambassador Penny Lancaster praised the monarch for his vision for creating the awards and highlighting the needs of the planet throughout his adult life.

‘We all know that the King has been the forefront and sort of marching us all along for more than 50 years, he’s been an absolute pioneer and visionary in that sense,’ she said.

‘These awards and indeed the foundation is so important because of the role they have in not only protecting these traditional crafts and the environment but also giving the winners such an incredible platform to go and achieve great things.

Charles (pictured left), 76, appeared in excellent spirits as he welcomed stars including Kate Winslet (pictured right), Stanley Tucci and Sir Rod Stewart ‘s wife Penny Lancaster to St James’s Palace

British royalty met showbiz royalty on Thursday as the King rubbed shoulders with celebrities like Meryl Streep and David Beckham at the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony. Pictured, Penny Lancaster, David Beckham, Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet

Raymond Blanc, Alan Titchmarsh and Penny Lancaster share a laugh as they attend the ceremony in London

Meryl Streep, Alan Titchmarsh, David Beckham, Penny Lancaster and Kate Winslet attend the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

Stanley Tucci attends the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony, on the 35th anniversary of The King’s Foundation, at St James’s Palace

Meryl Streep, David Beckham and Kate Winslet pose for a photo during the annual ceremony

A lot of laughs! The celebrities appeared to be in great spirits as they attended the occasion

‘The King may have been accused of hugging trees and people thinking he was mad when he started talking about the environment all that time ago, but he was at the forefront then and now has been proved right with everything he said and now we’re all just trying to play catch up.

‘I really recognise the beauty in the way he is trying to get us on board with his knowledge and if we can pass that on to the younger generation, and save some of the traditional skills like we’ve seen with these winners today, we can all be a part of making a difference.

‘I think the mistake is when we say, well, there’s such a huge job ahead of us that we could give up, but where’s the hope about and confidence that we can pull together to not make it such a mammoth task, there is real hope for the future.’

The Emerging Talent award, presented to an individual who has shown exceptional talent and commitment while on a King’s Foundation programme, went to Emily Hurst.

Emily has recently completed the CHANEL and King’s Foundation Métiers d’Art Fellowship in Millinery, based at Highgrove Gardens.

In her final year of university, she independently learned the heritage craft of straw braiding to produce historically accurate hats, a skill that has since become central to her practice.

‘In my final year at university, I discovered the craft of straw making and fell in love with it. I found out it was an endangered craft and then my tutors put me in touch with the King’s foundation,’ she explained.

‘Working at Highgrove was absolutely the best place to be, surrounded by so much inspiration from His Majesty’s garden and learning from some of the best milliners with country, I’m so incredibly honoured.’

French chef Raymond Blanc and English gardener and broadcaster Alan Titchmarsh (pictured posing with David Beckham) were also among the excited guests

British actress Kate, pictured centre right, appeared effortlessly elegant in a cream suit

Proving to be the perfect host, Charles had American actress Meryl, 75, Titanic star Kate, 49, and footballing legend David (pictured next to Penny Lancaster), who is tipped for a knighthood in the King’s birthday honours list, in fits of giggles as he chatted to the stars in attendance

Attended by 200 guests, the awards celebrates the exemplary work of students, teachers, alumni and partners who have contributed to the Foundation’s work across a range of sectors including sustainability, traditional heritage skills and environmental education

Winner of the Young Entrepreneur award went to Barnaby Horn for developing his own business after honing his traditional milliner skills also on the CHANEL and King’s Foundation Métiers d’Art Fellowship in Millinery, based at Highgrove Gardens.

Known for his exploration of gender through playing with familiar shapes and historic cultural references, in 2023 he launched his namesake label ‘Barnaby Horn’. Judges said Barnaby ‘has an experimental approach to millinery and is dedicated to developing a mastery in the traditions of the craft’.

He said: ‘After having lots of different jobs after university, including being a writer and working as a drag queen, I eventually went to the Royal College of Art to study millinery as a master’s.

‘I realised that hats had potential to be artefacts of storytelling and I also wanted to be able to make work that was sculptural and tell stories while I was physically not in the room.

‘There’s a lot of my work that is poetry, performance or something that involves dance, so I wanted to create work that could embody characters, and obviously the head is such a sensitive place, like a location of dreams and the continuation of storytelling that I love.’

Before he left His Majesty cut a birthday cake to mark the Foundation’s birthday, waving the knife theatrically in the air in celebration.

The event included the premiere of the Harmony Song, composed by Jack Pepper and inspired by His Majesty’s philosophy of Harmony. 

Jack is a member of The King’s Foundation 35 under 35 network, which has brought together 35 young people to celebrate the charity’s anniversary and encourage a new generation to engage with The King’s Foundation’s work.

Enjoying the special occasion, David (pictured next to Meryl) appeared to be in his element as he put on an animated display

The event included the premiere of the Harmony Song, composed by Jack Pepper and inspired by His Majesty’s philosophy of Harmony

The King’s Foundation is a charity founded by Charles when he was Prince of Wales in 1990. Pictured, David Beckham and Kate Winslet attend the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

David (pictured centre on Thursday) became an ambassador for the King’s Foundation in 2024

The King’s Foundation is a charity founded by Charles when he was Prince of Wales in 1990. 

The charity offers education courses for almost 15,000 students annually, and health and wellbeing programmes for nearly 2,000 people every year. 

It also works on placemaking and regeneration projects in the UK and overseas with the aim of revitalising communities and historic buildings.

The foundation carries out work at educational and cultural hubs in London, based at The King’s Foundation School for Traditional Arts in Shoreditch, Trinity Buoy Wharf on the River Thames and the Garrison Chapel in Chelsea. 

In addition to its UK presence, the foundation delivers programmes and projects in more than a dozen sites abroad.

In November 2023, Buckingham Palace announced that the King’s long-standing charities had been rebranded in recognition of his accession to the throne.

As the Prince of Wales, Charles set up the youth charity the Prince’s Trust; the Prince’s Foundation and the grant-giving Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund (PWCF).

But 14 months after he became monarch and a week ahead of his 75th birthday, the palace announced the organisations’ names had been updated to become The King’s Trust, The King’s Foundation and King Charles III Charitable Fund. 

Kate Winslet presents an award during the ceremony, pictured left. Pictured left: David Beckham presents the Emerging Talent Award during the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

David Beckham presents the Emerging Talent Award during the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

(7th left to right) Alan Titchmarsh, Penny Lancaster, David Beckham, King Charles III, Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet during the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony at St James’s Palace

King Charles holds a knife to cut a cake during the King’s Foundation Awards ceremony

Charles once spoke of his hope his two sons William and Harry, now the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Sussex, would take over the Prince’s Trust, which he set up with his Navy severance pay in 1976.

But William is paving his own way as the new heir to the throne, focusing on homelessness and mental health.

Harry, amid continued fractures in family relations after his Netflix documentary and autobiography Spare, is living thousands of miles away in the US with his wife Meghan Markle having quit as a working royal.

The switch in name to The King’s Foundation meant the monarch could keep the organisation and the two others firmly under his wing, despite the demands of his role as King.