With the eyes of the world on Westminster Abbey yesterday for the King’s Coronation, everything had to be meticulously planned. But despite months of preparation and a mostly-smooth service, there were a few mishaps along the way.
King Charles III and his wife Queen Camilla were crowned during the two-hour service, led by the Archbishop of Canterbury. While the ancient ceremony unfolded, there were some key figures and moments which stole the show and caught viewers’ attention, the Mirror reports.
From Katy Perry wandering around trying to find her seat, to Princess Anne blocking Prince Harry’s view, there were certainly a few awkward moments which will go down in history. We take a look at some of the strangest moments below.
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Katy Perry gets lost
US pop singer Katy Perry was among the celebrity guests attending the ceremony. She is set to perform in the Coronation Concert on Sunday evening. But Katy, dressed in a striking baby pink number, left fans in stitches for the wrong reasons at the ceremony on Saturday.
On her way into Westminster Abbey, she almost fell to the floor as the heel on her white court shoes almost gave way. And then once inside the abbey, walking alongside British Vogue editor Edward Enninful, the California Gurls star struggled to find her seat among the crowd.
Puzzled Katy sought help from guests already seated as she roamed the pews asking which was her spot. She later broke her silence a few hours later, tweeting: "Don't worry guys I found my seat".
Prince Andrew is booed
One member of the royal family didn’t receive a warm welcome from crowds ahead of the ceremony. The King's disgraced brother Prince Andrew was booed as he was driven past royalists down The Mall.
The Duke of York faced the wrath of some onlookers who vocalised their distaste for him from the grandstand in front of Buckingham Palace. Although he did attend the service, there was no special role for the Prince.
Princess Anne’s hat
Prince Harry attended the coronation ceremony alone as his wife Meghan Markle stayed at home in California to look after their children and celebrate Archie’s birthday. But despite travelling all that way for a seat at the big event, Harry may have had a better view at home as the Princess Royal’s hat ended up obstructing his view.
The Duke of Sussex sat in the third row, alongside Princess Eugenie's husband Jack Brooksbank and Princess Alexandra - the cousin of the late Queen who hasn't had a working royal engagement in a decade. Once the ceremony commenced, viewers began to notice that poor Harry's face was being blocked by the red feathers, with some cheeky commentators audaciously suggesting it may have been done on purpose.
Prince Harry showed ‘cocky’ bravado
Although his view wasn’t great, Prince Harry reportedly performed a display of "cocky bravado" as he arrived at the ceremony, according to a body language expert. The estranged Prince used his controversial appearance to signal to the world that he was "happy to be back" on UK soil after months of attacks on the royal family amid escaping to the US for a new life with Meghan.
Body language expert Judi James told The Mirror that viewers witnessed "an incredible return of the joker prince" as a grinning Harry arrived alongside royal cousins Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
An unexpected guest
Several viewers reported seeing a potentially unwelcome guest at Westminster Abbey - a ‘Grim Reaper’. The spooky figure, donning the mythological character's iconic dark robes whilst carrying an item resembling a scythe, was filmed walking by the doors of the abbey.
Creeped-out royal fans immediately took to Twitter to share screen grabs of the dark silhouette.
Another pen incident
King Charles had another awkward mishap with a fountain pen once again after last year's fiasco in Belfast. When it came to singing the oath in the abbey, it seemed the pen wasn't working as intended amid the important declaration.
Charles could be seen grimacing as he placed the lid back on top of the stationery item. The monarch is known to carry his own pen for when he is frequently asked to sign visitors' books during royal visits, but it seems the item has been letting him down lately.
An unsteady moment for the Queen
While Camilla’s family proudly looked on as she was anointed following Charles, her crown appeared to not be the best fit. The new Queen was filmed using her index finger to adjust her hair underneath the crown at least five times.
She then raised her hand and appeared to give the Archbishop of Canterbury some verbal assistance. It came after the Archbishop was forced to spend several seconds adjusting the crown on the King's head.
Prince Louis and the National Anthem
Naturally Prince Louis stole the show at certain points during the ceremony. The five-year-old royal distracted viewers first by yawning and fidgeting, before accidentally singing 'God Save The Queen' for the National Anthem when the service came to an end.
There was also confusion when the young prince appeared to go missing from the ceremony and wasn't seen next to his parents, the Prince and Princess of Wales. He did process into the abbey with his family - but due to still being young, he was "retired" during the service due to his tender age.
Officer fainted
More than 4,000 ceremonial troops took part in the procession escorting the new King and Queen back to Buckingham Palace in the historic Gold State Coach. However unfortunately just moments before the procession kicked off, a Royal Navy officer dramatically fainted.
A small number of military members rushed to assist their colleague who was quickly put onto a stretcher and given medical assistance.
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