‘People thought King Charles was crazy. But in fact, we all know now that he was right’: Penny Lancaster’s royal admission | Exclusive

EXCLUSIVE: King Charles is renowned for championing the environment, especially across his time as the Prince of Wales.

So it was no surprise to see His Majesty attend the World Premiere of David Attenborough’s new film Ocean With David Attenborough on Tuesday night (Wednesday AEST), the two year anniversary of his coronation.

English model Penny Lancaster, who now, together with her husband Sir Rod Stewart is an ambassador for The King’s Foundation, tells 9honey King Charles was always ahead of his time.

READ MORE: King Charles and Queen Camilla unveil coronation portraits

”The King, as we all know, was [at] the forefront, and he was really ahead of his time,” Lancaster tells 9honey.

“He was the king that was hugging the trees and talking to the plants, and people thought he was crazy.

“But in fact, we all know now that he was right, and if only we’d listened earlier.”

Inspired by his father, Prince Philip, who was involved in the founding of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the monarch’s conservation message has sometimes earned him a bit of backlash over the years.

A man who practices what he preaches, King Charles even runs his own personal car on biofuels and introducing more electric vehicles to the royal fleet.

READ MORE: Meghan shares new photo of Archie for his sixth birthday

Lancaster says she admires His Majesty for using his platform to highlight the issue.

“It’s people like our King and Sir David Attenborough that really do shine a huge light on what the most important thing is – it’s finding that balance, that harmony between communities, between people and nature, because we can work in tandem together.”

It’s a sentiment singer James Blunt agrees with.

“I think it takes informed people with a public persona, to tell us that we are in dire need of action now,” he tells 9honey on the blue carpet in London.

“They speak great common sense and I suppose the King and David Attenborough are our most senior people, so [it’s] wonderful they’ve come together to do this.”

David Attenborough turns 99 this week, with the global launch of the film coinciding with his big birthday.

Ocean is tipped to be the broadcaster’s last film but Lancaster says whatever happens next, we owe a lot to the screen icon for sharing “his lessons in life”.

READ MORE: Meghan shares new photo of son Prince Archie for his sixth birthday

“He knows that he won’t be around to see what happens in 10 or 20 years time, he’s done all he possibly can.”

The King and David Attenborough met inside Royal Festival Hall on London’s south bank ahead of the special screening, chatting away like old friends.

Attenborough even introduced the monarch to his daughter Susan.

For a daily dose of 9honey, subscribe to our newsletter here.

All the times the royals met someone more famous than them

King Charles took part in multiple events and audiences on the second anniversary of his coronation.

While he was joined by wife Queen Camilla earlier in the day at The National Gallery, the monarch attended the film premiere solo.

FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in celebrity, lifestyle and opinion via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.