Behind all the pomp and circumstance surrounding the coronation of King Charles III, the first in decades after the death of his mother, the long-lived Elizabeth II, a BBC documentary uncovered little pearls: jokes, forgetfulness... Bloopers "real" during rehearsals.
For example, King Charles III joked about having "sausage fingers" with his son, Prince William, during Coronation rehearsals, as captured in the documentary.
The affectionate television portrayal of the King reveals a playful and warm relationship with his son, the network wrote on Friday.
The BBC documentary follows the preparations for the elaborate ceremony in May.
Official photo of Charles III, on the day of his coronation. Photo: Reuters
It also shows the Archbishop of Canterbury forgetting his lines in an essay.
"I have a memory that's probably as good as our spaniel's; in other words, zero," says Archbishop Justin Welby, of not knowing the words during one of the many practices for the ceremony.
When the Archbishop froze in the middle of prayer, while blessing the King in the Coronation Chair, another cleric joked and I said, "You should have said that sooner."
Charles and Camilla, King and Queen. Photo: Reuters
The King, dressed in the golden robe of the Coronation over suit and tie, also bursts out laughing.
The 90-minute documentary, Charles III: The Year of the Coronation, which will be screened on BBC One on Boxing Day, shows King Charles as a kind-hearted figure, immersed in the complex preparations for his coronation.
The Ceremony
The ceremony was as medieval as it was spectacular. And its modernization became a controversy. Charles III, the first king in 300 years to wait 74 years to come to the throne, was crowned at Westminster Abbey alongside his wife Camilla, former lover, wife, then queen consort and by the sovereign's decision, the new British queen.
The ceremony was as medieval as it was spectacular. Photo: Reuters
The most luxurious Crown Jewels and centuries-old ceremonial robes were unfurled for the Coronation, with the Anglican church displaying their ancestral rites.
It was a modern ceremony. The Parker Bowles, the ex-husband and children of the new Queen Camilla, arrived by bus and were placed in the front row. The Queen's grandchildren took part in her coronation, wore her long sovereign train and were greeted naturally. A royal family blended but not reconciled.
Sausage Fingers
For the rehearsals, a replica of part of Westminster Abbey was built inside Buckingham Palace, so participants could continue practicing.
In one of the final rehearsals, in the abbey itself, the cameras caught Prince William supporting his father quite tenderly.
When the prince struggles to fasten one of the ceremonial robes, the king tells him not to worry, as he doesn't have "sausage fingers" like his.
With information from BBC News and Paris, correspondent