King Charles joins forces with Hollywood star Idris Elba for knife crime doco

King Charles is set to appear in a gritty new documentary with a huge star in a bid to tackle a major crime scourge.

King Charles will join British star Idris Elba in a new documentary about knife crime.

The actor, who grew up in London’s Hackney, will open up about his difficult teenage years in Idris Elba: A Year of Knife Crime.

The Wire star will discuss solutions to youth violence with King Charles in the BBC documentary and meet young offenders and bereaved families, The Sun reports.

King Charles and Idris Elba have worked together on events for The King’s Trust. Picture: AFP

Reflecting on growing up in a “tough” part of London, Elba said: “Perpetrators are getting younger, fear is spreading.

“I hope our film goes some way towards … getting everyone to engage with one of the biggest challenges of our time.”

KATE’S SWEET MESSAGE TO BOLLYWOOD STAR

Princess Catherine has delivered a sweet message to a Bollywood star who has struggled with cancer.

Manisha Koirala has revealed she sent the royal a message in March after Princess Catherine revealed to the world she was battling cancer.

“I wanted to reach out to HRH The Princess of Wales to send my good wishes, particularly due to my own experiences,” she told Nepalese media.

Princess Catherine, with Prince William, reached out to a Bollywood star. Picture: Getty Images

Bollywood actress Manisha Koirala during a visit to Adelaide. Picture: Prue Bassett publicity

The royal responded with a heartwarming letter of support, the Bollywood actress said.

“I am deeply heartened to receive such a warm response from her and wish her the very best of health,” Koirala said.

Koirala was treated for ovarian cancer in 2012 and was given the all clear a year later.

“I want to use my voice to not only support cancer patients but also to raise awareness about the need for equitable healthcare access and the importance of knowing the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer,” she told Nepalese publication Khabar.

KING’S BOOZY NEW SIDE HUSTLE

King Charles has launched another enterprise with £250 ($A492) bottles of whisky made with barley from his Highgrove estate

Each bottle of the limited edition single malt whisky is numbered and comes in a gift box featuring a watercolour by His Majesty of the residence near Tetbury, Gloucestershire. There will only be 400 of them, according to The Sun.

King Charles, then Prince of Wales at Highgrove Estate on December 4, 2021 near Tetbury, Gloucestershire, England. Picture: Peter Nicholls-WPA Pool/Getty Images

It is the most expensive whisky being sold by the estate, with the next on offer costing around half as much.

It offers connoisseurs of the liquor a vanilla and orange peel nose, a hint of candied ginger and a lightly spiced finish.

Highgrove House. Picture: Supplied

The whisky is made by the award-winning Cotswolds Distillery in Stourton, Shipston-on-Stour, just across the county border in Warwickshire.

It is aged in premium active ex-red wine and first-fill bourbon casks at the distillery, the only one in the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

It uses heritage Plumage Archer barley grown at the Highgrove Estate and traditionally floor-malted at Britain’s oldest working maltings.

Limited edition Highgrove Single Malt Whisky featured King Charles’s watercolour on the gift box. Picture: Supplied

The maltings, in Warminister, Wiltshire, is where the barley was first created in 1906.

The use of Plumage Archer “yields a subtle but unique twist” on the spirit, according to the royal estate, which the King rents from the Duchy of Cornwall — now controlled by his eldest son and heir, Prince William.

The estate shop offers a range of whisky and gin, often trading on their locally sourced or organic credentials.

Highgrove produces an extensive range of luxury food, drink and gifts. Browse the collection here.

‘PERFECT TONIC’: KING’S NEW MOVE AFTER AUSSIE TOUR SUCCESS

Meanwhile, King Charles is planning more overseas tours next year after the success of his Australian visit.

The King’s whirlwind Aussie tour, which took in Sydney and Canberra before he jetted off to Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, proved to be the “perfect tonic”, according to a senior Palace official.

King Charles III and Queen Camilla pose for a photograph during a visit to a beach in Apia, Samoa. Picture: AFP / Getty Images

The official told The Sun that the monarch, who will continue his cancer treatment after pausing it during his Aussie visit, had “genuinely loved” the nine-day tour.

The official said the Australian tour had lifted “his spirits, his mood and recovery”.

It came after Queen Camilla had tears in her eyes during a fit of the giggles as the King made an impromptu speech in the ­village of Siumu on their final morning in Samoa

As the royal couple flew back to the UK, they issued a message saying they would treasure “countless fond memories”.

Queen Camilla had tears in her eyes during a farewell ceremony in Samoa. Picture: Getty Images

The King and Queen attend the bestowing and farewell ceremony on the final day of the royal visit to Samoa. Picture: AFP

The Sun reports that Buckingham Palace has now told the British government that the King is ready to go on more trips in 2025.

One is thought to be in Europe while a second may be further afield as part of a plan to secure the 75-year-old monarch’s legacy.

A senior Palace source said: “We’re now working on a full overseas tour program next year.”

King Charles will return to weekly hospital trips for his cancer treatment after flying back to the UK.

The Palace source told The Sun that King Charles had “genuinely thrived” due to the success of the trip.