Jay Blades: Heritage and crafts bonded me and King in The Repair Shop episode
The one-off royal special to mark the BBC’s centenary saw The Repair Shop visit Charles in Scotland.
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Your support makes all the difference.Jay Blades said a “shared interest” in heritage and crafts “bonded” him with the King while filming a special episode of The Repair Shop.
The show marked the BBC’s centenary with a one-off special which saw the repair team visit Charles, when he was still the Prince of Wales, at Dumfries House in Scotland.
During The Repair Shop: A Royal Visit, the monarch’s bracket clock and a piece made for Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee by British ceramics maker Wemyss Ware were all fixed.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain the day after the episode aired, Blades was asked about a reported “bromance” with the King as they were seen laughing and joking during the episode.
The 52-year-old presenter replied: “I (don’t know) about (a) bromance… we just have a shared interest in heritage and crafts. I get on with everyone.
“(Our interest) bonded us together.”
Blades was also asked if he followed royal protocol as he was seen “touching” the King at different points in the episode.
When he greeted the 73-year-old monarch with a cup of Earl Grey tea, he presented it in an HRH mug and put his hand on Charles’s arm.
Moments later, the King returned the gesture by placing a hand on Blades’ back.
Blades said on Thursday that if Charles “did not want” to be touched he would not have been seen “returning” his affection.
The pair were also seen holding each other’s arms at one point during the course of the episode.
In the special programme, Charles 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 then prince said during the show: “Apprenticeships are vital. I see the difference we can make.”
Blades told GMB on Thursday: “I think he had the freedom then (to talk about apprenticeships)”, adding that he does not know if Charles as monarch can now talk about his passion for the on-the-job training.
Horologist Steve Fletcher said repairing Charles’s clock was “one of the biggest challenges” he has faced in his five years on the show.
“To actually achieve getting it going was a total relief,” he said.
He added: “(The King) just has a natural (presence) that calmed us all.”
In the episode, the clock’s pendulum was shown being swung in order to hear the tick tock working as Charles then checked his watch to see it had the right time.
The King was also shown that the damaged 19th century ceramic piece associated with Queen Victoria had been restored.
– The Repair Shop: A Royal Visit was broadcast on Wednesday and is available on BBC iPlayer.