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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Amy Denman

Jay Blades says royal Repair Shop episode shows King Charles in a way you 'never see him'

Jay Blades has revealed what it's really like working with King Charles, ahead of the special episode of The Repair Shop.

The 52-year-old presenter and furniture restorer joined his Repair Shop team alongside the then-Prince Charles to film a special episode of the BBC One programme, which was filmed in 2021 before the death of the Queen.

In the one-off programme, titled A Royal Visit, Jay and the team restore two historic items for the royal, now known as King Charles III.

The episode sees the experts tasked with restoring an 18th-century bracket clock from the collection at The Prince's Foundation's Dumfries House headquarters, and a piece of Wemyss Ware made for Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.

Jay Blades and the Repair Shop team filmed a special episode with the then-Prince Charles, who has since become King (PA)

Ahead of the programme airing, Repair Shop star Jay revealed to the Mirror what it was really like working with the King.

Speaking on the red carpet of the Pride of Britain Awards on Monday evening, Jay gushed: "I'm excited for everybody to see it because it is really, really special.

"I know I might say that all the time about all the Repair Shops but, basically, to have someone like the former Prince of Wales – now King Charles III – it's a wow moment.

Jay opened up to the Mirror about what it was really like working with the King (PA)

"Wait until you see it and then tell me, call me up and tell me what you think!"

Not many people have the pleasure of meeting with the 73-year-old royal and Jay admitted his encounter with the then-Prince exceeded his expectations.

When asked what his favourite moment from filming was, Jay said: "All of it, he's a real joy.

The Repair Shop experts are tasked with restoring an 18th-century bracket clock and a piece of Wemyss Ware (PA)

"People often say never judge a book by its cover so you never listen to what people say until you've met the real person yourself.

"It was a real joy and an honour to be working with him, wait until you see it, you're going to be amazed. You never see him like this."

Ahead of the episode airing, a teaser clip from the special was released – in which the King admitted the suspense to see his restored goods was "killing him".

Jay said it was a 'real joy and honour' to work with the monarch (PA)

Before the results were unveiled, he was capturing asking the crew: "Have you sorted this? The suspense is killing me."

Elsewhere in the show the monarch also met students from the Prince’s Foundation Building Craft Programme – a training initiative that teaches traditional skills such as blacksmithing, stonemasonry and wood carving.

The King also added during the preview: "Apprenticeships are vital. I see the difference we can make."

Speaking of the episode, Jay previously said: "You’ve got someone from a council estate and someone from a royal estate that have the same interests about apprenticeships and heritage crafts, and it is unbelievable to see that two people from so far apart, from different ends of the spectrum, actually have the same interests."

The Repair Shop, A Royal Visit airs on BBC One at 8pm and will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer

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