EXCLUSIVE: How King Charles' Tea Blunder Left Ronald Reagan 'Horrified'
King Charles and Ronald Reagan found themselves in an awkward situation.
Sept. 20 2026, Published 4:00 p.m. ET
King Charles once left Ronald Reagan "horrified" at the White House – simply by failing to drink a cup of tea served with the tea bag still inside it, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The King, who is now 77 and still fighting cancer, was the 32-year-old Prince of Wales when he visited Washington, D.C., in 1981 and met Reagan, then 70, in the Oval Office.
White House Tea Bag Mishap Creates Awkward Moment
King Charles left president Reagan 'horrified' during an Oval Office visit, a royal author claims.
But an attempt to offer the British visitor a traditional refreshment went awkwardly wrong when White House staff served tea American-style, leaving Charles apparently unsure what to do with the bag.
David Charter, author of Royal Audience: 70 Years, 13 Presidents – One Queen's Special Relationship with America, said: "Ronald Reagan was horrified when he had Prince Charles into the Oval Office, and they brought him a cup of tea that still had the tea bag in it, and he could see that he wasn't drinking this cup of tea, and he thought he'd made a terrible faux pas."
Charter added it was "a very small little faux pas like that" that "somehow only endear each side (the British and Americans) to the other a little bit more".
Reagan, who served as president between 1981 and 1989 and died aged 93 in 2004, recorded his embarrassment in his diary after the May 1 meeting.
He wrote: "Charles. He's a most likeable person. The ushers brought him tea – horror of horrors, they served it our way with a tea bag in the cup. It finally dawned on me that he was just holding the cup & then finally put it down on a table. I didn't know what to do. Mike escorted him back to the W.H. and apologized. The Prince, 'I didn't know what to do with it.'"
Tea Blunder Does Not Damage Royal Relationship
Princess Diana famously danced with John Travolta during a state dinner.
The tea mishap did no lasting damage to their relationship.
Charles returned to the White House in 1985 alongside Princess Diana, then 24, during their first joint visit to the United States.
They joined Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan, then 64, for tea in the West Sitting Hall of the White House Residence.
That visit also produced one of Diana's most famous photographs when she danced with John Travolta, then 31, during a White House dinner.
Reagan later wrote: "The dinner for the Prince & Diana was a great success. It had not a hint of 'State Dinner' flavor. Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time."
He added: "Ted G. had decorated the W.H. more beautifully than we've ever seen it. Leontyne Price sang wonderfully & then everyone danced like at a Junior Prom."
Royal Visits Build Longstanding US Ties
King Charles and Queen Camilla commemorated American independence during a state visit.
Charles returned to Washington in April with Queen Camilla, 79, for a state visit commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence.
Charter said royal connections with American leaders stretch back centuries, including King George III's meeting with John Adams in London in 1785.
He recalled George telling Adams: "I was the last to consent to the separation, but the separation having been made, and having become inevitable, I've always said that I would be the first to meet the friendship of the United States as an independent power."
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The minor tea mishap caused zero lasting damage to their warm friendship.
Charter said Queen Victoria later maintained extensive correspondence with American presidents and presented the Resolute Desk, constructed from timbers of HMS Resolute, to the United States.
He added: "It was a sign of enduring friendship between Britain and America."
