King Charles was in high spirits on Saturday as he stepped out in Caithness, Scotland, to attend the Mey Highland Games with two rarely seen royals. The King wore a traditional kilt and was pictured waving as he arrived at the games.
He was later snapped drinking a dram of whisky and meeting competitors, who appeared jubilant to meet His Majesty. Although Queen Camilla did not join her husband for the event, the monarch was not alone as he was joined by his “very special” cousin, Lady Sarah Chatto, and her son, Samuel, who brought his girlfriend, Eleanor Ekserdjian, with him. Lady Sarah is the late Princess Margaret’s only daughter and shares a close bond with the monarch.
During a reception earlier this summer at St James’s Palace, the King praised his cousin during a speech for the 25th anniversary of the Royal Drawing School.
The monarch, who co-founded the school in 2000 with artist Catherine Goodman, said: “I can’t resist saying a few very small words because above all, I wanted to pay a very special tribute to darling Catherine who, can you believe it, it all goes back really to when my very special cousin, Sarah [Chatto], and Catherine were young 18-year-old students at Camberwell School of Art and used to come bouncing into my room. I remember that was where it all started.”
Royal fans were delighted to see members of the King’s extended family join him at events.
One user wrote on X: “So lovely to see them included.”
Another one chimed: “I love seeing the extended family included in events.”
The King’s equerry, Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan “Jonny” Thompson, was also in attendance and was spotted speaking to Lady Sarah while seated behind Charles.
Jonny recently married Olivia Lewis, his fiancée, but he has joined the royals with his new wife at various high-profile events, including Royal Ascot.
The first Mey Games were held in the nearby village of Mey in 1970 to celebrate the late Queen Mother’s 70th birthday.
As guest of honour on the day, she declared the event a success and encouraged its organisers to make it an annual event.