LONG TO RAIN OVER US, SAYS CHEF FAN RAYMOND

CELEBRITY chef Raymond Blanc believes King Charles has all the right ingredients to be a great monarch — and has spilled the beans on a long-standing friendship which first blossomed over a shared passion for gardening.

Blanc, who is preparing to make a TV show about royal gardens this spring, even hopes the monarch might appear in it, as they will be filming at Highgrove.

The 72-year-old said: ‘I am a French republican — not a royalist. I can’t be! It’s not in my DNA. But Charles will be a good King, 100 per cent.’

He said the King’s long wait to ascend the throne meant he had become very knowledgeable about the environment, agriculture and food sustainability.

‘I was so saddened that he couldn’t go to Cop27,’ he said. ‘He would have been among the best speakers because his knowledge is so deep, and he believes in it.’

He adds: ‘When he speaks about food, he knows so much. My God, he is a natural! He is completely in love with that seed that you plant in that soil to grow a healthy plant. He knows his stuff.’ The pair first met back in 2014, when Blanc was invited to speak at Highgrove and (rather daringly) told Charles that his gardens lacked personality.

Three months later, Charles asked to come and see Blanc’s gardens at Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons, which include an orchard filled with rare varieties of British apple trees.

‘When he visited, it was a horrible day — it was as you say in England, raining cats and dogs,’ Blanc recalled. ‘He loved my gardens. But I realised to my horror that he was holding his own umbrella and me, I had a gardener holding mine! Anyway, we had a laugh about it. He has great humour.

‘And then we planted an apple tree together. His was better than mine. But I have learnt how to lose in England, so I said: “OK Sir, well done.” ’

When Blanc’s mother died two years ago, he received a letter from Charles. ‘It was really lovely. The fact he could take a bit of time. It was very thoughtful of him.

‘He is a good man. There is a lot of wisdom now. We all do our own mistakes growing up, but he is going to be a good King.’