Inside King Charles and Queen Camilla’s star-studded DC garden party

British ambassador to the US, Christian Turner, who was appointed to the role by Trump in February, and his wife, Claire Turner, welcomed King Charles and Queen to a grand garden party at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. Garden parties are a royal tradition and usually hosted by the royal family at Buckingham Palace or royal residences during the summer months. It has been decades since the royals hosted a garden party in America, the last being held by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1939.

During the outing, the royals were seen chatting with British Olympian Tom Daley. According to People, he spoke to the Queen about his children, Robbie, 7 and Phoenix, 3, and to the King about his knitting. “She asked about my kids. She couldn’t believe how old they were now,” Daley shared about his interaction with Queen Camilla. He also offered a peek into his conversation with King Charles, adding, “He said he used to knit when he was 8 years old. He said he wasn’t very good at it, but said he knew it was very good for mental health and maybe should give it another go.” The Olympian also mentioned that while he feels “out of place” during such events, this one felt “surreal” and “fun.”

Among those in attendance at the garden party from the Trump administration was White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller. He was later photographed engaged in a candid conversation with the monarch.

Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson was seen engaged in a conversation with US Rep Nancy Pelosi and her husband, Paul Pelosi, during the garden party. Per People, Johnson spoke to King Charles about his historic joint address to Congress on April 28. “I told him he will be very well received,” Johnson shared. “It’s something everyone is excited about. It’s an historical event, and it’s exciting that it falls on our anniversary year,” he continued. “The King was very personable. You can tell that he gets along well and enjoys these events, and takes it all in his stride,” the speaker added.

Representatives of charity organizations important to the monarchs were also invited to the event. Queen Camilla was seen chatting with Michelle DeLaune, CEO of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. She also met Sandra Jackson, CEO of the House of Ruth, who praised the Queen for her “leadership” in such causes. Gretchen Shaw of the National Domestic Violence Hotline also shared that the representatives were “thrilled” that the royal “made time to speak to us.”