King Charles III displayed his trademark wit on a visit to Oxford, making light-hearted jokes about ‘dangers’ during a tour of a community hub and speaking to volunteers at the upcoming Leys Festival.
The monarch visited the Schwarzman Centre, a new facility for local community groups, to unveil a commemorative plaque. While meeting those involved in the Leys Festival, a weekend-long celebration of creativity and culture, the King appeared to poke fun at just how ‘hot’ the food could be.
The viral footage came as the King officially opened the Schwarzman Centre in Oxford, a £20m project set to be a meeting point for up to a dozen groups.
Speaking to Erica Whyman, Creative Lead for the Leys Festival, the King was evidently excited about the vast number of people from diverse backgrounds coming together. She said that his interest in the varied food culture represented was met with playful warnings about how “very, very hot” the spices used in some traditional dishes could be.
He laughed: “The dangers of… hot spicy dishes… oh you’re going to put my eyes out… oh that will be the last of the King’s spice tolerance!”
However, it wasn’t just jokes that brightened the occasion. Mr Charles spent time speaking at length to community leaders and volunteers about their heritage, including to Dolcie Obhiozele. “I spoke briefly to him about the Windrush generation and about the portrait that he commissioned of the Windrush generation, which I think is now stored at Buckingham Palace,” said the Greater Leys community leader.
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Luke Ejodamen, also a community volunteer and chef who spoke with the King, shared: “He asked me quite specific questions about the culture of Nigerian people – the history, food and so on. He also reminisced on his own visits to the country over the years.”