King jokes former chancellor should ‘keep trying’ to make Britain ‘great again’

The King told Sir Jeremy Hunt to “keep trying” when the former chancellor told him he was writing a book on how to “make Britain great again”.

Sir Jeremy, 59, was knighted by the King at Windsor Castle on Tuesday.

The politician said: “He asked me what I was doing, and I said I was writing a book on how to make Britain great again, and he said, ‘Well, keep trying’, with a twinkle in his eye.”

Sir Jeremy also thanked the King for writing a letter to his 11-year-old daughter, and for visiting his friend at a south London hospice to invest her as a Dame shortly before she died.

The King visited Dame Sarah Anderson, who was founder and chief executive of suicide prevention charity The Listening Place, at Royal Trinity Hospice in Clapham Common on December 5, two days before her death.

The Conservative MP said: “We’re so lucky with our King, we had a very nice chat.

He said: “I thanked him because he visited the hospice last week and gave a damehood to a friend of mine, which was an incredible thing to do because she sadly passed away on Sunday, so he made a special journey to see her, and I think my friend was incredibly moved by that.

“I also thanked him for a letter he wrote to my 11-year-old daughter, who had written to him when he was ill.”

As well as serving as chancellor, Sir Jeremy, who grew up in Surrey, was foreign secretary, health secretary, and culture secretary in past Tory governments.

He said he felt “a bit overwhelmed and very humbled” to receive the honour at Windsor Castle, adding: “It’s a lovely moment. Politics is a lot of rough and tumble but I feel incredibly honoured to be recognised in this way, so it’s a happy day.

“It’s a very special day for my family. I think in politics, sometimes families get forgotten, and it’s a particularly tough career for your wife and kids, so it’s a very special day for all of us – and it reminds me that it’s all for them.”

Dame Penny Mordaunt, who served alongside Sir Jeremy in Rishi Sunak’s cabinet, also received her honour at Windsor Castle on Tuesday.

The former Commons leader, 52, said she was pleased to see the King in “very good form” despite a busy few days hosting the German president and his wife for a state visit last week.

She said: “It’s always lovely to see him and a real treat seeing him today. It’s great to see him in such great spirits. He’s clearly had a very busy week but he was on very good form today.”

Dame Penny, who grew up in Portsmouth and is Navy reservist, played a prominent role in the King’s coronation in 2023 when she carried the Sword of State.

She described the experience as a “great honour”, adding: “I was aware I was a bit of a lightning rod for people’s attention, but it was very lovely because I got to hear about how everyone was feeling on that day and it was a day which brought the whole nation together and reminded us what we were all about as a country, so it was fabulous to be part of that.”

When asked how heavy the Sword of State was, Dame Penny replied: “Very. But I recommend Navy drill training to anyone considering the role.”

Others to receive an honour at Windsor Castle on Tuesday included wheelchair tennis champion Andy Lapthorne and Traitors host Claudia Winkleman, who was made an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours List this year for services to broadcasting.

It comes as Winkleman prepares to leave Strictly Come Dancing at the end of its current series.

Winkleman, 53, has hosted the BBC show alongside Tess Daly, who will also step down from the role, since 2014.