Great enthusiasm for Italy, interwoven with common sensibilities and fuelled by the attractiveness of the 'soft power' that Italian art, culture, beauty and lifestyle are able to exert. This is - in the reflections of the Italian Ambassador to London, Inigo Lambertini - the background to the preparations for the state visit to the Vatican and Italy - with stops in Rome and Ravenna - announced for the beginning of April by Buckingham Palace for King Charles III and Queen Camilla: a much-awaited three-day trip, in the wake of the signs of recovery shown by the 76-year-old British sovereign after being diagnosed with cancer last year, and which will also coincide with the royal couple's 20th wedding anniversary on 9 April.
Preparations were sealed at the weekend by a "very successful" and "unforgettable" gala evening, as Lambertini stressed, promoted in collaboration with the Embassy and the King's Foundation to celebrate at the royal country residence of Highgrove two strong points of the image of Bel Paese's excellence abroad: Slow Food (in the name of zero-kilometre food and the fight against waste) and sustainable fashion (or Slow Fashion).
The parterre alongside Carlo and Camilla, as well as Ambassador Lambertini and his wife Maria Grazia, was exceptional: from celebrities such as the Italian-American actor Stanley Tucci, who helped inspire the dinner menu together with Calabrian chef Francesco Mazzei, to Oscar-winning actress Dame Helen Mirren, to David and Victoria Beckham, to Roberto Bolle; to prominent Italian entrepreneurs committed to sustainable projects and Italian-British dialogue such as Federico Marchetti, Donatella Versace, Brunello Cucinelli, Renzo Rosso, Angela Missoni, Lorenzo Bertelli, Remo Ruffini and Emma Marcegaglia. Not to mention stars of both the Italian and British gastronomic scene such as Giorgio Locatelli, Carlo Cracco, Franco Pepe, Angela Hartnett or Raymond Blanc. And again Carlo Petrini, the tutelary deity of the Slow Food philosophy, whose ideas King Carlo has approached for many years, of whom he is now a friend and with whom he has spoken at length, perhaps even about similar health experiences.
The event at Highrove, marked by the preparation of Italian dishes with local ingredients, some of which were grown in the residence's own gardens using the bio-sustainable farming methods dear to Elizabeth II's eldest son, demonstrated once again how 'cultural diplomacy can strengthen the ties between Italy and the United Kingdom,' the ambassador emphasised today, noting how the Peninsula continues 'to be a global reference point for excellence, blending tradition and innovation.
All this in a context in which the king also tried to set an example at the table, retrieving from his plate a last piece of bread and some oil before they were taken away. Before becoming a champion again today of the environment and sustainability - themes he has pioneered for decades - even at home: acting as a cicerone for Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, in a rare joint public event, in the human-friendly settlement of Nansledan, in Cornwall, south-west England. A project with a 'green' flavour that was born on royal land under his auspices when he was heir to the throne, and holder of the Duchy of Cornwall, and which envisages investment in schools, services and 3700 model homes in Old England style set in nature: only 840 of which have so far been built, however, due to policy delays.
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