King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla hosted a reception at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday evening to celebrate the contribution that East and South-East Asian communities make to Britain.
Guests including fashion designers Alexa Chung and John Rocha, the Crown Prince of Selangor, Malaysia, and “Korean Englishman” YouTubers, were greeted by the royal couple.
More than 300 people from across various sectors including the arts, media, fashion, business and health care were served champagne and canapes throughout the evening.
Other members of the royal family joined the celebratory event — the Earl of Wessex, the Princess Royal, the Duke of Kent, the Duchess of Gloucester and Princess Alexandra.
Guests gathered in the White Drawing Room, Blue Drawing Room and Picture Gallery to greet their royal hosts.
Ms Chung, wearing a sparkling dress, said she had “a lovely time”.
Mr Rocha, a Chinese-Irish designer born in Hong Kong, said he felt “very proud” to be at the reception.
He said it was amazing that he had been born “in a colony” and was now “here talking to the king”.
Mr Rocha called the palace “a wonderful place” and recalled speaking with King Charles about fishing when he arrived to collect his CBE in 2002.
King Charles III visits north-west England - in pictures
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King Charles III and the Queen Consort views L S Lowry's Going to the Match painting during a visit to Bolton Town Hall. -
King Charles III speaks to staff on the cornflakes production line during a visit to Kellogg's in Manchester, north-west England. AFP -
King Charles unveils a plaque to mark the 100th anniversary of Kellogg's. AFP -
King Charles tours the headquarters of Kellogg's. AFP -
The king visits the Kellogg's kitchen. AFP -
The king and Queen Consort Camilla arrive at Bolton Town Hall. AFP -
Children wait with flowers outside Bolton Town Hall. Reuters -
King Charles arrives on the royal train at Manchester Victoria Station. AP
YouTubers Joshua Carrot and Oliver Kendal, who host the “Korean Englishman” channel centred around sharing South Korean culture and food, said they were “amazed” the king had heard of them.
The channel has more than five million subscribers on YouTube.
Mr Carrot asked the king whether he had ever tried Korean food.
“He said he was a big fan of the food," he said. "He liked everything unless it was a bit too spicy."
The reception took place shortly after Lunar New Year, celebrated by Chinese, South Korean, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Singaporean, Lao, Thai, Mongolian, Bruneian, Indonesian, Japanese, Cambodian, Filipino and East Timorese communities around the world.
King Charles and Prince William make first appearances since Prince Harry's memoir - in pictures
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King Charles III arrives at an event in Aberdeenshire two days after the release of Prince Harry's book 'Spare'. Getty Images -
Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales, were also back out fulfilling royal commitments, visiting the Royal Liverpool University hospital. Reuters -
King Charles unveils a plaque in his honour during the visit in Aberdeenshire. AP -
The Princess of Wales poses for selfies with staff at the new Royal Liverpool University Hospital. AP -
King Charles signs a guestbook. Getty Images -
The Prince and Princess of Wales listen to young adults in the 'Mentor Room' while visiting the Open Door Charity in Birkenhead. AP -
King Charles toured new facilities at the local community space, as well as meeting with support groups. AFP -
Prince William and his wife meet staff at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital. AFP
In February 2022, King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla, when they were the Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, visited Chinatown in London to mark Lunar New Year.
They visited local shops, organisations and communities, and the king joined a conversation about hate crime towards the Chinese and wider East and South-East Asian communities.
Meanwhile, the queen consort visited the Chinese Information and Advice Centre where she met police officers, immigration case workers and clients.
