King jokes Im still alive during visit celebrating Walthamstow community

The King joked that he was “still alive” during a visit with the Queen to Walthamstow after August’s peaceful anti-racist protest in the area.

The couple attended a reception in celebration of community cohesion at Waltham Forest Town Hall in east London on Friday, and greeted crowds who had gathered outside.

Asked “How are you?” by Sikh faith representative Harvinder Rattan, the King smiled as he replied: “I’m still alive.”

The royal couple waved at the crowds outside the town hall and went on a walkabout after meeting representatives from different faith communities in the listed building.

During the visit, Camilla donated 25 toys to Citizens UK, to be passed on to children living in asylum hotels, and a donation to a food bank was left on the King’s behalf.

The donation included Waitrose cartons of long-life milk, Christmas puddings, custard and mince pies.

After listening to a performance by a children’s choir, A Little Choir of Joy, Charles told them: “I do hope you have a very happy Christmas.”

He then joked that the children in the choir, made up of eight to 12 year-olds from schools in the borough, should “make the most of it” for the “poor teachers”.

Charles was presented with a Christmas card from the choir, with messages written inside which included “Your majesties, thank you so much for visiting us today” and “hope you enjoyed our singing”.

Refreshments for the reception were provided by Haven Cafe, whose owner Usman Khalid is a former asylum seeker who trains refugees to be baristas.

After disorder across some parts of the UK, thousands of people gathered in Walthamstow for a counter-demonstration on August 7, and those planning to protest outside an immigration centre failed to turn up.

The area in north-east London was one of hundreds of locations earmarked for protests, and there with fears of widespread unrest.

Instead, at least 5,000 counter-protesters gathered outside the immigration centre, taking a stand, they said, against racism and violence.

Among those greeting the royal couple in the town hall was Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy, who said the visit “means a lot”.

Speaking after the royals departed, the Labour MP told the PA news agency: “The far-right are very active in our local community, and they continue to come and protest here.

“That means that we as a community have to be constantly vigilant and it means a lot that the King has recognised the community, the grassroots activism.

“We never want to get to a place again where people are having to challenge the far-right on our streets.”

Buckingham Palace said August’s peaceful protest demonstrated the “true community spirit of the borough, coming together to keep people and communities safe”.

Waltham Forest was officially recognised as a Borough of Sanctuary by the national charity City of Sanctuary in December 2023.

Published: 20/12/2024 by Radio NewsHub