Prince William's recent encounter with Taylor Swift following one of her Eras Tour concerts at Wembley Stadium stunned Internet users, particularly when the popstar shared the intimate backstage moment with her 283 million Instagram followers on Saturday (June 22).
Taylor congratulated the prince on his 42nd birthday, writing, "Happy Bday M8! London shows are off to a splendid start."
But this is far from being the most memorable encounter between royal figures and celebrities. From Frank Sinatra to Marilyn Monroe and the Spice Girls, dozens of actors and musicians have bowed down to the United Kingdom's royalty.
Below, Bored Panda looks back at 19 times, with varying levels of awkwardness, celebrities have met the Royal Family.
#1 Princess Diana Dancing With John Travolta
The Pulp Fiction star and Lady Di famously danced together at the White House during a gala hosted by then-president of the United States, Ronald Reagan, and his wife, Nancy Reagan, in 1985.
John invited Princess Diana to join him in the ballroom to dance to the Bee Gees' You Should Be Dancing from his film Saturday Night Fever.
"The stage is like a dream. I approach her, touch her elbow, and invite her to dance. She spins around and gives me that captivating smile, just a little sad, and accepts my invitation. And there we were, dancing together as if it were a fairy tale," the actor recalled during an interview with Esquire Mexico 36 years after the iconic dance.
Image credits: Pete Souza/The White House
#2 Angelina Jolie And Queen Elizabeth II
In 2014, Angelina was made Honorary Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG) for her campaign to end sexual violence in war-torn countries.
Queen Elizabeth II presented the Hollywood actress with the insignia of the honorary damehood in October of that year.
Image credits: Anthony Devlin - WPA Pool/Getty Images
#3 Taylor Swift And Travis Kelce With Prince William, Prince George, And Princess Charlotte
In the most recent case of celebrity encounters with royal figures, Taylor greeted Prince William and two of his children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, backstage at one of the eight concerts the Karma singer is set to play at London's Wembley Stadium.
The Royal Family beamed at the camera as the famous popstar snapped a selfie with them following her concert on Friday (June 21). In a separate photo posted on the singer's Instagram, the group was joined by Taylor's boyfriend, NFL star Travis Kelce.
In 2013, Taylor and Prince William shared the stage with Jon Bon Jovi for a performance of Livin' on a Prayer during a Centrepoint charity event at Kensington Palace.
Image credits: taylorswift
#4 Marilyn Monroe With Queen Elizabeth II
Marilyn shook the Queen's hand in London in 1956, three years after the late royal's coronation.
The two met at the Royal Film performance of The Battle of the River Plate at the Empire Theatre in Leicester Square.
Image credits: ullstein bild/Getty Images
#5 Prince Harry And Prince Charles With Victoria Adams "Posh Spice" And Mel C "Sporty Spice"
Prince Harry and King Charles III met the English girl group during a week-long visit to South Africa in 1997.
Some of the girls seemed to forget all about strict royal protocol, with Geri Halliwell and Melanie "Mel B" Brown kissing Charles on the cheek.
"Now that Charles is our King, it kind of makes it even more naughty," admitted Melanie "Mel C" Chisholm during a 2022 interview with People Magazine. "Those naughty Spice Girls!"
In his memoir, Spare, Prince Harry revealed that the cheeky scene earned his father "some positive headlines, which he sorely needed" following his divorce from Lady Di.
Image credits: PA Images via Getty Images
#6 The Beatles Meet Princess Margaret And Queen Elizabeth II
"The people in the cheaper seats, clap your hands… and the rest of you, if you'd just rattle your jewelry," the iconic rock band told the audience at the Royal Variety Performance in 1963, a joke that made Queen Elizabeth II smile.
Two years later, the Queen appointed John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).
In 1969, Lennon returned his medal to the Queen in protest of Britain's involvement in the Nigerian Civil War.
Image credits: George Freston/Fox Photos/Getty Images
#7 Queen Elizabeth II Meets Lady Gaga
Queen Elizabeth II met Lady Gaga during the Royal Variety Performance in 2009, an annual variety show held in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity.
The charity is dedicated to supporting those who have professionally served the entertainment industry and find themselves sick, impoverished, or elderly.
For the special event, Gaga opted for a striking red latex look with large puff sleeves, matching rhinestone eyeshadow, and pointed-toe boots.
"I was meeting the Queen, and I wanted to dress like a queen in British fashion, and I also wanted to do it my way," the Applause singer told Vogue in 2021.
Image credits: Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
#8 Frank Sinatra Greets Queen Elizabeth II
The musician met Queen Elizabeth II in 1958 at the Odeon Theatre in Leicester Square at the premiere of Me and the Colonel.
They met again in 1983 at 20th Century Fox's studios.
Image credits: Bettmann
#9 Rihanna And Prince Harry
Rihanna, born Robyn Rihanna Fenty, sat beside Prince Harry at the 2016 Golden Anniversary Spectacular Mega Concert held at the Kensington Oval Cricket Ground in Bridgetown, Barbados, the singer's home country.
For their first meeting, the 36-year-old wore a blue dress and yellow fingernails, mirroring the colors of the Barbados flag.
Image credits: Chris Jackson - Pool/Getty Images
#10 Harrison Ford With Queen Elizabeth II
The legendary actor bowed down to Queen Elizabeth II at the premiere of Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1978.
Image credits: Harry Myers/Shutterstock
#11 Barbra Streisand And Queen Elizabeth II
The Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony winner bowed to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at the premiere of Funny Lady in London in 1975. In the film, Barbra portrayed Fanny Brice, the comedian who created the radio comedy series The Baby Snooks Show.
Image credits: Hulton Archive/Getty Images
#12 Prince Harry Meets Kanye West And Sean "P Diddy" Combs
This photo was likely not on anyone's 2007 bingo cards.
Harry met Diddy, who was sued in a $30 million sex trafficking lawsuit on February 26, and Ye at an event honoring the late Princess Diana.
Prince William was present at the event as well.
Image credits: Anwar Hussein Collection/Wireimage
#13 Queen Elizabeth II Visits The Game Of Thrones Set And Cast
The late Queen and Prince Philip met several cast members of the popular HBO show, including Conleth Hill (Varys), Kit Harington (Jon Snow), Rose Leslie (Ygritte), and Maisie Williams (Arya Stark), during a visit to the set in Northern Ireland in 2014.
The couple also met David Benioff and Dan Weiss, executive producers and screenwriters of the series.
Image credits: Jonathan Porter - Pool/Getty Images
#14 Prince Harry And Meghan Markle Meet Beyoncé And Jay-Z
The royal couple met Queen Bey and Jay-Z when they attended the European premiere of The Lion King in London in 2019. Beyoncé starred as a voice actress in the animated film, giving life to Nala in the Disney remake.
"I think it's safe to say that they definitely struck up an instant clear rapport, bonding over their kids," an insider told E News about Meghan and Beyoncé's encounter.
Image credits: Niklas Halle'n-WPA Pool/Getty Images
#15 Madonna Shakes Hands With Queen Elizabeth II
In 2002, real-life royalty met music royalty when Queen Elizabeth II greeted the Queen of Pop at the world premiere of Die Another Day at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Image credits: Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
#16 David Duchovny Explained Booty Calls To Prince Charles
David educated the King of the United Kingdom on a concept the younger generation knows quite well: the booty call.
In the 1990s, the X-files star attended an All Saints concert with Charles. "In the song, which I don't remember, they say the phrase 'booty call' over and over again, and I saw Prince Charles just kind of looking perplexed," the actor revealed in 2016 during an interview with James Corden.
"And he said, 'Booty call…' and I said, 'Well, I can explain it to you. It's a little off-color, but I can do it.' And he said, 'Yes, please.'"
"Well, it's when a man or a woman calls a man or a woman to come to their home late at night for the express purpose of getting together and then leaving right afterward," he elegantly explained to Charles, to which he replied, "...Oh!"
Image credits: The Late Late Show with James Corden
#17 Margot Robbie Talked To Prince Harry And Didn't Recognize Him
The Barbie star partied with Prince Harry at Suki Waterhouse's Christmas bash in 2016.
At first, Margot didn't know who the young prince was.
"When I saw him in those glasses, I was like, 'Oh my God, I didn't know Ed Sheeran was at the party,'" she recalled during an interview with Jimmy Fallon. "And he was really offended. He was like, 'Shut up!'"
She later added: "I'd had a drink or drinks. I thought I was hanging out with Ed Sheeran. I was thinking, 'Ed's a really cool guy. I'm going to take some pictures with him.'"
Image credits: Variety
#18 Serena Williams And Kate Middleton
The Princess of Wales and the 23-time Grand Slam champion met for the first time in 2016.
Serena, who is reportedly close friends with Meghan Markle, included Kate in her list of "bada** women" along with Beyoncé and Rihanna.
"Kate Middleton. And why's that? Because of the woman's ability to stand, composed in front of a bank of photographers, after each of her births, So she's officially No. 1," the tennis champ said in 2018.
Image credits: Serena Williams/Snapchat
#19 Allison Janney Called Kate Middleton "Honey"
Allison met the Prince and Princess of Wales at London's BAFTA Awards in 2018.
The actress, who took home the award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in I, Tonya, met the royal couple toward the end of the ceremony, when she had removed her heels to be more comfortable.
"I just told her that I was in bare feet and [that] she should take her shoes off 'cause she's pregnant. It was an awkward moment," the Academy Award winner said. "As I did, I called her 'honey,' and that might not have been royal etiquette."
Image credits: The Late Late Show with James Corden
