At The King’s Trust’s 50th anniversary event in London, the rocker praised the monarch’s recent U.S. visit — and added an off-the-cuff remark

King Charles greets Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood at Royal Albert Hall on May 11, 2026.Credit : Aaron Chown – WPA Pool/Getty

King Charles is still receiving praise for his recent state visit to the U.S.

On Monday, May 11, Charles attended The King’s Trust’s 50th Anniversary Celebration at Royal Albert Hall in London, where he greeted a lineup of celebrity guests including Rita Ora, Anne-Marie and Craig David.

When he reached Rod Stewart, the rocker offered his congratulations on the trip — and added a comment that introduced a potentially awkward note for the monarch, who traditionally remains politically neutral.

“May I say, well done in the Americas,” Stewart, 81, said, according to video shared on social media by the Daily Mail’s Rebecca English. “You were superb. Absolutely superb. You put that little rat bag in his place.”

The King did not visibly respond to the remark, which some observers interpreted as a reference to president Donald Trump, as those nearby appeared to laugh.

Stewart and Trump were once friendly and lived near each other in Florida.

However, the “Forever Young” singer told Radio Times last year, he no longer considered Trump a friend, citing his administration’s arms sales to Israel: “How’s that [Gaza] war ever gonna stop?”

Rod Stewart, Kenny G and Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago in 1998.Davidoff Studios/Getty

The rocker continued, “He’s always been a bit of a man’s man. I liked him for that. But he didn’t, as far as I’m concerned, treat women very well. But since he became President, he became another guy. Somebody I didn’t know.”

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Stewart wasn’t alone in touting King Charles’ four-day U.S. visit as a success. Specifically, the monarch’s historic address to a session of Congress, which followed in the footsteps of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, was highly praised.

He incorporated humor, telling the assembly of politicians, “King George never set foot in America and, please rest assured, I am not here as part of some cunning rearguard action!”

“The Founding Fathers were bold and imaginative rebels with a cause,” the King continued. “Two hundred and fifty years ago — or, as we say in the United Kingdom, ‘just the other day’ — they declared independence.”

King Charles addresses Congress on April 28, 2026.Chip Somodevilla/Getty

King Charles also addressed the solemn timing of his visit — amid the war in Iran and just days after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting — calling the present “more volatile and more dangerous” than when his mother came stateside in 1991.

“The challenges we face are too great for any one nation to bear alone,” the monarch said. “But in this unpredictable environment, our alliance cannot rest on past achievements, or assume that foundational principles simply endure. As my prime minister said last month: ‘Ours is an indispensable partnership. We must not disregard everything that has sustained us for the last 80 years. Instead, we must build on it.’ “

Trump also praised the King’s remarks, telling reporters later that night, “He made a great speech. I was very jealous.”

Washington, D.C.-based royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith told PEOPLE in this week’s issue: “Politicians of every stripe saw King Charles in a new and more favorable light.”