Elaine Paige has described how she was so overwhelmed with nerves during her investiture at Windsor Castle in November that she struggled to speak, prompting a six-word response from King Charles. The singer and actress, who received a damehood for services to charity and music, told SAGA that she was overcome with a 'well of emotion' as she approached the monarch.
A Moment of Silence and a Quiet Query
'As I looked the King in the eye, I couldn't speak,' Elaine recalled. 'He said to me, "Keeping your hand in, are you?" But he's got quite a quiet voice, and I'm now a little hard of hearing – which is one of the reasons why I don't perform live any more – so I thought, "Did he say what I think he said?" There was a beat before I answered him and said, "Oh yes."'
Following Charles's question, Paige remarked that she 'stumbled' through the conversation before telling the King about her new album and offering to send him a signed copy. 'We talked about my charity work, then that was it. It all happened so quickly,' she continued. 'But it was an extraordinary thing. Overwhelming, to be honest.'
Honours and Reflections
Elaine, who was included in the King's Birthday Honours list last year, received her damehood 30 years after Queen Elizabeth II appointed her an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her contributions to musical theatre in 1995. Prior to the ceremony, the West End star penned a message of gratitude on X, writing: 'Music and the charities I support are the mainstays of my life. To receive this acknowledgment for doing what I love is the ultimate privilege. In the words of Rodgers and Hammerstein "There is Nothin' Like a Dame" and this newly-minted one is absolutely over the moon and truly grateful.'
