A smiling King Charles III received a kiss from one well-wisher as he was greeted by cheers of “God Save the King” at Buckingham Palace on Friday.
Returning to London for the first time since the death on Thursday of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, he got out of his car to meet some of the thousands of people gathered to mourn and greet the new monarch.
He shook hands, accepted flowers and waved as people held up their phones to take selfies, while others offered some words of condolence, and calls of “We love you King Charles” were heard.
But, a woman in the crowd quite a bit further by offering to kiss the King. Jenny Assiminios leaned forward over the barrier and politely asked for a kiss as Charles went for a handshake. After the kiss, Charles looked unflustered and carried on meeting people.
King Charles III greets crowds outside of Buckingham Palace as a member of the public gives the new King a kiss. pic.twitter.com/QRgVrmmAaV
— The News Desk (@TheNewsDesk) September 9, 2022
“I have seen him in front of me. I couldn’t believe it and I said to him, ‘May I kiss you?’ He said ‘Well, yes,’ so I grabbed him and I was very happy,” Jenny said in an interview to CNN.
“Thank you, God, for letting me see him and kiss him,” she added. She said she has been a huge fan of Great Britain’s most famous family.
“I love the Royal Family,” she said. “Always I am watching them, buying souvenirs from when they are small babies to growing up.”
Charles, 73, wearing a black suit and tie and white shirt, afterwards walked to see some of the bouquets and tributes left at the gates of the palace for his late mother.
“It was impressive, touching, a good move to come out to the crowds,” said Ammar Al-Baldawi, a 64-year-old retiree from north of London.
“These are true loyalists here and it’s nice to see him back in post, taking charge of the family and the Crown, which is reassuring.”
Charles was joined by his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, before they went inside, where the new king was due to record his inaugural television address to the UK and the Commonwealth.
They had flown down from Scotland where they had been with the queen at her Balmoral estate, where she died on Thursday aged 96 after a record-breaking 70 years on the throne.
“He’s got a hard act to follow,” said Stephen Johnson, a 56-year-old Londoner.
He said he was feeling “very emotional”, similar to when Charles’ ex-wife Diana died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
“I’m still getting my head round King Charles III,” he told AFP.
“He’s our king now, we’ve got to love him but memories of Diana are fresh, only last month we marked the 25th anniversary of her passing.”
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