King Charles showed his class after a comedian jokingly branded him a “grovelling b*****rd” at an awards bash. Back in 1994, comedy writer Spike Milligan was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement gong at the British Comedy Awards. Milligan became a household name in Britain in the 1950s as a founding member and primary writer for The Goon Show, a wildly-popular surrealist BBC radio comedy that was beamed into millions of households in the post-war years.
The King was among the many fans of the programme long before he became monarch, and reportedly struck up a personal friendship with Milligan. Taking to the stage to receive the award, in recognition of his decades of work across radio and TV, the comedy writer wiped a tear from his eye as he received a standing ovation from the star-studded audience.