Meat Loaf Had an Awkward Encounter With Prince Andrew: ‘The Queen Hates Me’
It’s hard to picture Meat Loaf and Prince Andrew in the same room, yet it happened. The pair crossed paths when Meat Loaf signed on to appear at the 1987 charity event It’s a Royal Knockout.
However, they probably shouldn’t have crossed paths because their encounter quickly turned awkward. The Duke of York emerged unscathed. On the other hand, Meat Loaf, who died on Jan. 20, 2022, apparently upset Queen Elizabeth II. She didn’t end up seeing the singer in the best of lights after that.
Meat Loaf and Prince Andrew had an awkward encounter at It’s a Royal Knockout
In 2003, Meat Loaf told the Guardian he got into a bit of a scuffle with Prince Andrew at It’s a Royal Knockout.
“It was during this period that Meat made his own small contribution to British history by appearing in It’s a Royal Knockout, with hindsight the point at which it all started to go wrong for the royal family,” the Guardian wrote.
“Oh, the Queen hates me,” Meat Loaf said. “It was great fun. I had a great time. Fergie wasn’t exactly flirting with me, but she was paying attention to me, and I think Andrew got a little – I could be wrong, I’m just reading into this – I think he got a little jealous…
“Anyway, he tried to push me in the water. He tried to push me in the moat. So I turned around and I grabbed him and he goes, ‘You can’t touch me. I’m royal.’ I said, ‘well you try to push me in the moat, Jack, I don’t give a s*** who you are, you’re goin’ in the moat.'”
We don’t know if Meat Loaf’s story is a hundred percent accurate. The Guardian pointed out, “Meat has a bit of a reputation as a fabulist.” He often told various stories of how he got his stage name and consistently lied about his age.
According to the Independent, Meat Loaf once said, “Names and ages p*** me off. So I just continually lie.” So, we’ll take this story with a pinch of salt. All we do know is that Meat Loaf was at the event.
What was It’s a Royal Knockout?
According to Grazia, It’s a Royal Knockout should be considered one of the royal family’s lowest points. “What was the lowest day in the history of the royal family? Was it the abdication of Edward VIII? The fire at Windsor Castle? The decision by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to retire from their senior roles? Nope. It was It’s A Royal Knockout,” Grazia wrote.
“Somehow, more than three decades ago, Prince Edward decided to organise a medieval themed celebrity tournament overseen by several heirs to the throne, and it was absolutely as bad as it sounds.”
The tournament was all Prince Edward’s idea. He, Prince Andrew, Princess Anne, and Prince Andrew’s wife, Sarah Ferguson, were team captains who paraded around in medieval clothes colored in their specific team colors.
“These captains oversaw physical tasks undertaken by a motley crew of celebrities, many of them impressive,” Grazia continued. “Christopher Reeve, the Superman icon, rubbed shoulders with singer Toyah Wilcox, Chris de Burgh, Dr Quinn actress Jane Seymour, John Travolta, Anneka Rice, John Cleese, Margot Kidder and Meat Loaf.
“When the singer sings ‘I would do anything for love, but I won’t do that,’ one imagines he is referring to the idea of a repeat of this day in history.”
The Queen didn’t enjoy the tournament
Maybe the reason why the queen didn’t seem too impressed with Meat Loaf was because she didn’t enjoy the tournament as a whole. Biographer Ben Pimlott said that the queen “viewed the escapade with derision even before the cameras started rolling.”
“It was a terrible mistake,” one of the Monarch’s friends said. “She was against it. But one of her faults is that she can’t say no.” Another recalled, “There was not a single courtier who did not think it was a mistake.”
“It’s A Royal Knockout holds a fascinating place in history,” Grazia concluded. “It was a time where the royal family were finding their feet in a new modern world, as Queen Elizabeth II’s four children stepped out as their own people.
“Perhaps it was an experiment worth making, but it nevertheless failed entirely, and one wonders if Edward wakes in the night in cold sweats, remembering his mustard yellow tunic and matching hat. He may find solace in one thing, however: thank god Twitter didn’t exist then.”
However, one royal did enjoy something Meat Loaf did in his career. Princess Diana was reportedly a big fan of Rocky Horror Picture Show. Either way, no matter what sort of project Meat Loaf was attached to, whether it was good or bad, his fans will miss him.
