King Charles was left drenched and frustrated in a torrential downpour, prompting an awkward exchange with his aides that a lipreader has now decoded.
The royal couple had just arrived at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Nov. 1 for a parade celebrating the 45th anniversary of Antigua and Barbuda’s independence when the weather delivered an unexpected interruption.
As rain swept across the stadium, staff hurried to protect Camilla, 79, who was handed her umbrella and escorted toward covered seating. Charles, 77, wasn’t quite as fortunate.
While his wife made her escape, the king remained exposed to the downpour, waving his arms and looking around for assistance as the rain continued falling.
The footage quickly attracted attention online, but the king’s gestures weren’t the only thing that caught people’s interest.
Professional lipreader Nicola Hickling, founder of LipReader, examined the video and shared what she believes the royal couple said during the unexpected soaking.
Where’s the umbrella?
According to Hickling’s interpretation, Camilla was the first to react, urging, “Come on,” before asking, “Can I get an umbrella? I’m getting rather wet.”
Charles appeared confident that help was on its way, reportedly reassuring his wife, “Darling, they’re coming.”
And for Camilla, at least, it was.
When an aide arrived with her umbrella, the queen reportedly urged, “Quickly, I’m wet,” before heading toward shelter.
Charles, however, was still waiting.
As the seconds passed, the king gestured toward his staff, apparently repeating, “Where’s the umbrella? Where’s the umbrella?”
‘Can’t you see I’m wet?’
Then came an especially awkward moment when an aide walked past him without stopping.
“Where are you going? Can’t you see I’m wet?” Charles appeared to ask, according to Hickling.
With no immediate relief from the rain, the king reportedly pointed toward the building and asked, “Shall we go back?”
Eventually, his equerry, Major Ben Rigby, arrived carrying an umbrella, bringing the uncomfortable wait to an end.
But Hickling believes Charles had one final piece of advice for his staff.
“Perhaps one should keep a spare on hand,” the deaf lip reader claimed he said, according to the Express.
Camilla sees the funny side
By then, Camilla had reached the covered seating area, where another video appeared to capture her laughing at the unexpected interruption, according to the Irish Star.
Hickling described the incident as a “rather entertaining exchange,” although Charles appeared considerably less amused while standing in the rain.
Fortunately, the king’s frustration didn’t last.
He continued with his ceremonial duties, inspecting the Guard of Honour despite the wet conditions, before sharing a joke with Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister, Gaston Browne.
“I’ve started growing watercress on my trousers!” Charles reportedly quipped.
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