Dawn French’s anecdotes about the royal family – or rather, her interactions with them – are usually devilishly amusing.
The French and Saunders actor, 66, is currently promoting her book, The Tw*t Files, in which she tells anecdotes about her past as a, um, plonker, to put it kindly.
While working on these files, the Vicar of Dibley star found that stories of this nature just kept coming one after the other like a ‘tsunami,’ and she was never short of material.
When Dawn visited the royal family and had a brief encounter with the now-King Charles, one of her finest stories arose.
But, while Dawn had already discussed the interaction, including her cheeky beaver quip that made ‘Charlie’ sparkle (more on that later), Dawn has now stated that The King’started it’.
‘I was in one of the Narnia films. And I played Mrs. Beaver, opposite Ray Winstone, playing Mr. Beaver, and we went to the royal premiere. I was quite excited about meeting Charlie, because I’ve got a bit of fancy for him,’ explained Dawn in a recent interview with Virgin Radio.
‘I’d like to ruffle his hair on a Sunday morning. You know, that kind of fancy,’ she said, never, ever holding back. (We love you, Dawn.)
‘Anyway, he was coming down the line, greeting everybody. And he started it, I have to say. He started it because he had been to see A Midsummer Night’s Dream that I was in. And he said to me, “Well, the last time I saw you, I saw your Bottom”, referring to the character Bottom in Midsummer Night’s Dream, that I played.
‘And I thought, “Right, we’re off”. And I said, “Tonight, Sir, you will see my Beaver!” And then I did lots of over-laughing. And he very quickly moved on.’
Where there was a line, Dawn recalled how she went well and truly over it, and she then heard Mr Beaver, aka, Ray, ‘of all people’ make an ‘Urgh’ noise next to her.
‘Even he knew that I was about to be beheaded,’ she chortled.
But that wasn’t the end of the story. Oh no. Dawn royally stuck her foot in it once more, and the turmoil was complete.
‘As Prince Charles, as he then was, moved down the line quickly, I was looking at him, regretting everything, and I heard a noise in my ear, going “Dawn, Dawn” and I went, “YES, YES, YES, WHAT?”, and it was [Queen] Camilla!
‘And I went, “Oh, sorry, sorry, I was just telling him about my Beaver. No, sorry. Sorry.” Everything just went wrong. Everything went wrong. But that’s me. See a royal and I just put my foot in it.’
Dawn, we can’t argue with that.
This comes after the comic had to cancel all of her remaining Dawn French Is a Huge T**t tour dates due to an ailing knee.
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The remaining gigs in Cornwall, Nottingham, High Wycombe, Buxton, Basingstoke, Bath, Brighton, and Guilford have been cancelled, according to the star.
Taking to social media with a statement, Dawn wrote: ‘It’s with a massively heavy heart and FURIOUS t**ts that I have to admit defeat and postpone all of my remaining tour dates from tonight onward.
‘My STUPID SELFISH ol’ arthritic knee has totally given up and won’t let me walk. I am swearing a lot.’
She continued: ‘I am bereft to let you down. Sorry.
‘On the upside, I can have the op I so desperately need, earlier than planned. Ouch. And sorry again.
‘We are working hard to reschedule the dates. Bear with…’