King joins Ray and Apple bosses in the Battersea Power Station market.

King Charles enthusiastically visited the Christmas market at Battersea Power Station in south-west London.

A community choir was singing the carol We Three Kings when he arrived – and they had at least one real-life king there in person to hear it.

“You must be freezing,” King told the singers in a December drizzle. “You’ll need a stiff drink.”

King also met with Apple chief Tim Cook in a former power station building at the computer firm’s UK headquarters, before singer Ray serenaded him with a seasonal rendition of “Holy Night”.

Much of the power station is now a glittering mall and Christmas shoppers got more than they bargained for as the King appeared in the Starbucks window.

There can be something sly about even the most cheerful Carol – and it’s been a tough year for the monarch with health issues.

But he seemed happy here, chatting to some grumpy stallholders under the Christmas lights. He always seems to be animated by the crowd, jokes and gossip.

As he was being led to the next leg of the journey, he still had a surprise meeting with shoppers, shaking hands and facing a wall of mobile phones.

A trip to the power station was recharging it.

He was introduced to Rita Kelly, 90, who worked here in the 1950s when the turbines were generating electricity for the capital, and who said she was “honoured” to talk about her memories with the king. “Was.

“It was a very happy time working here,” he said. Although he said the king knew about his “naughty” side, when as a young man he mistakenly tried to climb a large chimney. was

Not even Father Christmas would have risked it.

The King visited the curated Makers Market and saw the stalls of small traders and artisans. It was founded by Megan Jones, supported by the King’s Trust, formerly known as the Prince’s Trust.

“People go to big stores, but here they can talk to the people behind the brand,” said Sofia Foroghi, who sold her handmade jewelry to the king. talked about, under his label Ava and Azar.

Natasha Katrowitz, who sells her jewelry, is happy to see people’s interest in earning a living from the king’s handmade crafts. “As a parent, it’s a much more flexible way of doing things,” she said.

The 1930s power station once generated a fifth of London’s electricity, including supplying important landmarks such as Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament.

A spokesman for the power station said the link to Buckingham Palace was carefully labeled “Carnaby Street” in the control room, in case anyone got in and literally switched off the palace’s lights, the power station. Spokesperson said.

With crowds and cameras for the King’s visit, it was probably louder inside the halls than when it was electrifying.

That’s enough to shake up Santa’s workshop, although at one such designer outlet, the resident Santa is living in a “yurt.”

This massive industrial-era cathedral remains an impressive sight – and the King’s mother, when she was still Princess Elizabeth, visited the power station here in 1949 in operation.

The six-million-brick power station is now filled with shops and eateries, and the king looked inside this post-industrial cavern. He waved to some surprised shoppers looking down from the aisles above.

The boiler house is so big that St. Paul’s Cathedral could fit inside.

The monarch is known to have an interest in architecture and design – and the building, whose four chimneys look like upside-down coffee tables, was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, the classic red phone box and Liverpool Anglican. Also responsible for the cathedral.

There is a strong sense of design for another power station-based business – technology firm, Apple, which the monarch visited after the Christmas market.

Some may see parallels between Apple computers and Monarch – a bit expensive but with many dedicated fans who think it’s worth it.

King visited Chief Executive Mr. Cook at Apple’s headquarters and was shown an example of the firm’s artificial intelligence technology, which can turn a few squiggles into a complete illustration.

The computer company has teamed up with the King’s Trust to help equip young people with digital skills and the King unveiled a plaque.

Cook praised the king’s “lifelong commitment to philanthropy and the betterment of humanity”.

There is a message about the changed times in how Apple now occupies these old buildings. The power station once used a million tons of coal a year, mined in the coalfields of Wales and northern England. It’s tech firms like Apple and designer shops that now fill the big halls.

And given how many photos King has taken with a cellphone, there may be few people in the country who have seen so many iPhones up close.

At the end of the tour, pictures made by children from a nearby primary school were projected onto giant chimneys rising into the evening sky. As Badshah left there was more music, including a performance by singer-songwriter Ray.

After all the Christmas trees and conversation, maybe it was time for a stiff drink of his own.