Charles III landed by helicopter at Trinity’s Sandilands sports ground on Friday 13 November as King Charles' birthday approached. He later moved on to Croydon for two special engagements, then returned to Sandilands to depart by helicopter.
The day’s first stop began with the flight from Windsor to Sandilands. The route placed the landing at Trinity’s sports ground at the center of the visit, before the King continued into Croydon.
BRIT School and Surrey Street Market
The King began the visit at the BRIT School and later went to Surrey Street Market in Croydon. The market is celebrating its 750th anniversary this year, and it was first established by royal charter in 1276.
That anniversary sits alongside the royal itinerary without any explanation for why the market was singled out for the visit. The stop still tied the day to a place whose history reaches back to 1276, giving the visit a second layer beyond the landing itself.
Howard School and Happy Birthday
Children from Howard School sang Happy Birthday to the King, who turned 79 the following day. The tribute made the timing of the visit plain: it fell on the eve of his birthday, not after it.
Trinity summed up the landing with the line, "It’s not every Friday that a King lands on your sports field!" The return to Sandilands at the end of the engagements completed the loop from arrival to departure, with the sports ground serving as both the entry and exit point for the visit.
