A Clapham pub where King Charles pulled pints to celebrate the lifting of Covid restrictions is preparing for its punters to raise a glass at The King’s coronation next month.
The King and Camilla, Queen Consort, had visited The Prince of Wales pub, which bears the name of the King’s former royal title, on 27 May 2021.
The then Duke and Duchess of Cornwall were attending the pub as part of a visit to local businesses after the easing of lockdown restrictions, which allowed non-essential shops to reopen.
Terry Slate, 55, is one of the pub’s co-landlords and was there on the day of the visit, where he watched the then Prince of Wales pull pints and joke with staff.
Slate said: “It was a bit of a surprise. We knew something was occurring beforehand, but we didn’t know the exact details.
“These things take a lot of planning, and we’d heard from the local business development people that something was going to be happening, but who this special visitor was, we didn’t know until the day.
“When he finally turned up, it was a bit of a shock. And he actually came into the pub and that was really special.”
The King had joked at the time about not drinking, before taking a sip of a pint he’d pulled himself, as his wife watched on.
He added: “King Charles is really nice, he’s very approachable.
“Obviously, he speaks to people and is good at engaging and asking questions – he seemed to be genuinely interested in the inside of the pub.”
The King’s previous visit to The Prince of Wales has made it quite an attraction ahead of the coronation.
Slate has explained how the Clapham pub is now preparing for some European film crews to be paying a visit on the day of the event, which is taking place on Saturday 6 May.
He said: “Obviously, King Charles visiting was a big news story so we’ve had interest from a few places – from Italy, from France.
“But we’ll be open as usual for people to come in, have a pint and raise a toast to the King.
“We’re expecting quite a few people so we’re getting some extra beer in, and we’re also putting the flags out and decorating the pub up.”
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