Would you turn down the opportunity to have tea with a British royal? Dolly Parton found herself in the unique position of having to politely reject an invitation to have tea with the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, during a recent trip to London.
The 77-year-old singer-songwriter revealed this in a recent interview with Claudia Winkleman on BBC Radio 2.
‘I felt so bad…I couldn’t even go!’
Parton has had many chances to experience London during her many years of touring, but this time around, her team had packed her schedule, so much so that she was unable to meet with Middleton. This London trip forms part of promotions for her album, Rockstar.
“This time, Lordy, I even got invited to have tea with Kate,” Parton told Winkleman. “And I felt so bad…I couldn’t even go! They had all this stuff set up,” she said.
The Jolene singer could not resist but quip that there was another reason for having to decline the invitation. “She wasn’t going to promote my rock album, so I had to say no,” Parton joked.
“But I hope she hears it, though!” Parton quickly added with a laugh.
Nonetheless, Parton thought the gesture by Middleton was ‘very sweet and nice’. “One of these days I’m gonna be able to get to do that,” Parton said.
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Dolly proves she still got it in ‘Rockstar’
Following her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last November, Parton promised to make a rock album worthy of the title.
She is currently promoting her first-ever rock album, Rockstar, which is set to release in November. The superstar has had a busy year promoting the highly anticipated album. A project that boasts a whopping 30 tracks with collaborations including Miley Cyrus, Rongo Starr, Paul McCartney. Stevie Nicks, Debbie Harry and Sir Elton John.
Previous encounters with Royals
Now while Parton might have missed her chance to enjoy the company of a Royal during her UK trip – she has performed for the royal family in the past. Back in 1977, the singer performed at Queen Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee.
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Over 45 years later, Parton reveals how afraid she actually was about curtsying correctly when meeting the Queen.
“Even though you have to do the protocol, you have to bow and all that, I could tell that she didn’t care about that. That’s just something she had to do,” Parton once told Insider. “And if somebody made a mistake, it was OK.”
Parton said she was “scared to death” about messing up the curtsy. But says that the now passed Queen Elizabeth was “very warm, very sweet” and “very giving”.
“Just meeting the Queen of England, just to meet a queen, it was amazing,” Parton told the outlet.
