Carl Cox meets King Charles at Buckingham Palace for King’s Trust 50th anniversary

26 May 2026
2 minutes · By Staff

Carl Cox has shared a "full circle moment". The techno legend visited King Charles at Buckingham Palace this week for a special event celebrating the 50th anniversary of The King's Trust. He posted on Instagram reflecting on the £1,000 grant from the Trust that funded his first DJ equipment decades ago.

Carl Cox at UNVRS Ibiza
UNVRS Ibiza

“Full circle moment,” Carl Cox wrote. “Yesterday I visited King Charles at Buckingham Palace for a special event celebrating the 50th anniversary of The King’s Trust.”

The decision behind that early career pivot has become part of his legend. “At 24, The Prince’s Trust gave me £1,000 which I used to buy my first DJ equipment,” he continued. “The big decision back then was whether to take £500 a week as a scaffolder or £60 a week as a self-employed DJ. I chose the music, and that was that ….the rest you know.”

Then the reflection landed on the present. “To come back all these years later, celebrating the Trust that helped me take those first steps and meeting King Charles at Buckingham Palace… that was something truly special. What a beautiful day.”

The King’s Trust, formerly known as The Prince’s Trust, is a youth charity founded in 1976 by then-Prince Charles. The organisation has supported more than 1 million young people across the UK over the past five decades. Plus, it has helped countless careers begin with small starter grants of the kind Carl Cox received.

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For Carl Cox, the moment ties two ends of a remarkable trajectory together. The arc runs from scaffolding work and a £1,000 starter grant to closing UNVRS Ibiza seasons and headlining festivals globally. The tiny initial bet has paid back many times over.

Beyond the personal milestone, the Buckingham Palace event highlights the cultural reach of The King’s Trust 50-year run. Honouring a working-class techno star at the palace also reads as quiet acknowledgement of how British dance music has shaped global culture. Find more on the Trust via the official King’s Trust site.

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