King Charles and Queen Camilla hosted a special dinner for Commonwealth leaders on the penultimate day of their Antigua and Barbuda trip. His Majesty gave a speech to the dinner guests, and he couldn't help but make a quip about his umbrella incident days prior.
The monarch had a smirk on his face as he delivered a witty line referencing being an "umbrella" in his role, a clear jibe at his own red-faced moment when he was left without an umbrella in a huge downpour.
"Although perhaps part of my role as Head of the Commonwealth is to provide an umbrella for you all," he quipped.
© POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesThe joke was received with laughter in the dining hall and a round of applause. His Majesty is known for his witty one-liners in speeches, and this one certainly delivered.
The issue occurred on Monday when a torrential spell hit the royals at the Sir Vivian Richards cricket stadium. "Where's the umbrella?" the King repeatedly asked, throwing up his arms as rain fell. While his wife, Queen Camilla, was handed a clear umbrella for shelter, the King was left standing in the deluge while his team struggled to find an umbrella for him. He later joked he was “growing watercress on my trousers”.
King Charles' joke about British government
This wasn't the only joke that Charles made during his speech, as he took the chance to take a swipe at British politics back home.
He said: "It has been a great pleasure to meet so many prime ministers, almost as many as I've had at home," and Charles couldn't resist laughing at his own joke once he delivered it, and the guests joined him with a hum of giggles echoing around the room.
The dark side of King Charles' trip
© Ben Stansall-Pool/Getty ImagesWhile there have been lots of light-hearted moments during Charles and Camilla's trip, there is a shadow over it due to the history of the slave trade. When the monarch arrived in the Caribbean, he addressed the issue, which he branded a "shameful chapter of history," adding: "It fills my heart with horror and my soul with the most profound personal sorrow." Despite bringing up the atrocities, Charles fell short of an out-and-out apology.
There have been calls for a formal apology and even reparations from the UK. Protests have taken place in the Caribbean, with demonstrators holding placards reading: "You say you regret so apologise", "Crimes against humanity could never be legal. Apologise now," and "Apologise for the greatest crime against humanity and let’s have reparatory justice".
