Actress Reveals that Queen Camilla "Stormed Out" of a Dinner After King Charles Made "Sexy" Comments

Soap star Carli Norris shared the hilarious story in a new interview.

King Charles laughing and Queen Camilla looking serious behind him
(Image credit: Getty Images)

It's not very often you hear about squabbles between royal couples, although Queen Camilla is known to put King Charles in his place. Like any couple, The King and Queen are said to have their disagreements—and British actress Carli Norris just shared a hilarious story about an old encounter with Their Majesties. The former Eastenders star met the then-Prince Charles when she was starring in a play on London's West End, and apparently she made quite the impression on the future monarch at the time—much to Camilla's dismay.

Speaking with host Elisabeth Dermot Walsh on the "Chicken Soap for the Soul" podcast, the soap opera actress shared how she was honored as a "national treasure" during Queen Elizabeth's 2022 Platinum Jubilee. Norris couldn't quite believe that she'd been invited to sing with other prominent Brits at the end of the celebrations, and came up with a hilarious theory about how she ended up on stage.

In 2016, Norris appeared in a West End production of the play The Chiltern Hundreds when "Prince Charles, as he was known then, came to the show." The actress continued that when the play started, she was "lounging in a chaise lounge wearing a pair of hot pants and sandals"—and it got the royal's attention.

Actress Carli Norris wearing a black cocktail dress on the red carpet

Carli Norris is pictured at the 2016 British Soap Awards.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

King Charles and Queen Camilla

The King and Queen recently celebrated their 20th anniversary.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

"Prince Charles was walking around, introducing himself to everybody and he came up to me and he shook my hand and he went, 'You've got very sexy legs,'" Norris recalled. "I went, 'Oh thank you, your highness'."

She continued that her co-star Edward Fox "came into work the next day and said, 'Well, someone's made an impression on Charlie!'" Fox had attended a dinner after the show with the royals, and Norris said, "Apparently, Prince Charles was going on and on about my legs so much that eventually Camilla slammed her knife and fork down and said 'Oh for goodness sake, Chas, will you stop going on about that gal's legs?!'"

In fact, Camilla was so annoyed that she "left the room and stormed out" after the repeated leg comments, per Norris.

Reflecting on her Platinum Jubilee invitation, the actress mused, "So I can only imagine, Elisabeth Dermot Walsh, that Prince Charles has been following my career, and he was the one that wanted me sitting near him for his mummy's Jubilee." Whether Norris gets another palace invite in the future, stay tuned.

Kristin Contino
Senior Royal and Celebrity Editor

Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.