Tom Cruise Tells King Charles III "You Can Be My Wingman" — In A Fighter Plane — Coronation Concert Cameo
King Charles III trained as an RAF pilot before joining the Royal Navy to fly helicopters.
Tom Cruise said he considered King Charles III his “wingman” at the monarch’s coronation concert.
In a pre-recorded segment titled 'Did You Know?' — which played just before Lionel Richel's performance at the Windsor Castle on Sunday (May 7) to celebrate Charles' coronation the day before — Pierce Brosnan revealed that the King, 74, “was the longest-serving Prince of Wales for over 64 years.”
“During that time the King developed a host of action-man skills,” the former 007 actor continued. “At 22 years old His Majesty got his wings as a fully trained RAF pilot.”
Survivalist Bear Grylls chimed in too. "He's also a Naval aviator and a trained Commando helicopter pilot in the fleet era.
"The King even took on the Royal Marines Commando training one of the hardest programmes in the world and not for the faint-hearted, trust me," said Grylls, himself a former Royal Marine Commando.
Next came Tom Cruise — in his P-51 Mustang. But of course.
“Pilot to pilot," said Cruise. "Your Majesty, you can be my wingman any time.”
The concert — hosted by Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville — also featured the first multi-location drone show, with 1,000 of the machines taking to the nation’s skies.
A Welsh Dragon made up of drones, spanning 140 metres, lit up the skies over Cardiff.
In a nod to Charles’ passion for the environment, a watering can appeared to hover above the Eden Project’s famous domes in Cornwall.
Charles’ love of the arts was also reflected in the show’s huge range of acts and performances, from acts including Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and Take That, while fashion designer Stella McCartney paid tribute to the royal for his decades of work highlighting environmental issues.
Over the weekend, Cruise picked up Best Performance in a Movie at the 2023 Movie & TV Awards for Top Gun: Maverick. Cruise will next be seen in Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One, in cinemas on July 13.
Watch the 'Did You Know?' segment here:
— BANG SHOWBIZ
Photo: TPG News/Click Photos
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