Queen Elizabeth II "danced the Conga" on VE Day, King Charles has confirmed in a surprising speech.
Members of the Royal Family, including Prince William and Princess Kate, are attending a concert, presented by Zoe Ball, with performances to echo the historic celebrations of VE Day 80 years ago.
During the concert at Horse Guards Parade, the King, 76, got up to make a speech.
The monarch referenced his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, by reading her diary entry from VE Day in 1945.
Queen Elizabeth II 'danced the Conga' on VE Day, King Charles confirms in surprising speech
Getty / BBC
He said: "The celebration that evening was marked by my own late mother who, just 19-years-old, described in her diary how she mingled anonymously in the crowds across central London and ‘walked for miles’ among them.
"The rejoicing continued into the next day, when she wrote: ‘Out in the crowd again. Embankment, Piccadilly. Rained, so fewer people. Conga-ed into House. Sang till 2 a.m. Bed at 3 a.m.!’
"I do hope your celebrations tonight are almost as joyful, although I rather doubt I shall have the energy to sing until 2am, let alone lead you all in a giant conga from here back to Buckingham Palace!"
Elsewhere in his moving speech, King Charles said: "The Allied victory being celebrated then, as now, was a result of unity between nations, races, religions and ideologies, fighting back against an existential threat to humanity.
Prince William and Princess Kate pictured in the royal box.
PA
"Their collective endeavour remains a powerful reminder of what can be achieved when countries stand together in the face of tyranny. But even as we rejoice again today, we must also remember those who were still fighting, still living with conflict and starvation on the other side of the world.
"For them, peace would not come until months later with VJ Day – Victory in the Pacific – which my father witnessed at first-hand from the deck of his destroyer, HMS Whelp. In remembering the past, we must also look to the future.
"As the number of those who lived through the Second World War so sadly dwindles, the more it becomes our duty to carry their stories forward, to ensure their experiences are never to be forgotten.
"We must listen, learn and share, just as communities across the nation have been doing this week at local street parties, religious services and countless small acts of remembrance and celebration.
King Charles delivers speech in front of Prince William and Princess Kate.BBCLATEST ROYAL NEWS:
The Duchess of Edinburgh looked pretty in pink.PA"And as we reach the conclusion of the 80th Anniversary commemorations, we should remind ourselves of the words of our great wartime leader, Sir Winston Churchill, who said ‘Meeting jaw to jaw is better than war’.
"In so doing, we should also rededicate ourselves not only to the cause of freedom but to renewing global commitments to restoring a just peace where there is war, to diplomacy, and to the prevention of conflict.
"For as my grandfather put it: ‘We shall have failed, and the blood of our dearest will have flowed in vain, if the victory which they died to win does not lead to a lasting peace, founded on justice and established in good will.’
"Just as those exceptional men and women fulfilled their duty to each other, to humankind, and to God, bound by an unshakeable commitment to nation and service, in turn it falls to us to protect and continue their precious legacy – so that one day hence generations yet unborn may say of us: ‘they too bequeathed a better world’."
