King Charles seems set to wake every day to the strains of a bagpiper beloved by his late mother.

King Charles seems set to wake every day to the strains of a bagpiper beloved by his late mother

King Charles seems set to wake every day to the strains of a bagpiper beloved by his late mother

There has been a piper to Britain’s monarch as part of a tradition dating back to Queen Victoria, with their job to play for 15 minutes daily at 9am outside the royal’s window.

The Daily Mail reported on Friday (23.12.22) Charles, 74, appears to be intent on continuing the long-standing practice as a piper has been spotted resuming the duty for the first time since he became king after the death of Queen Elizabeth aged 96 on September 8 at her beloved estate in Balmoral.

It added the player’s name was Pipe Major Paul Burns from the Royal Regiment of Scotland, and said he could be seen outside the window of the king’s private apartments.

He woke the late Queen on her final morning at Balmoral and played a lament as her coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault at the committal service at Windsor in September.

He also brought the monarch’s official funeral service at Westminster Abbey to a close with a rendition of ‘Sleep, Dearie, Sleep’.

Former royal piper, Pipe Major Scott Methven, 48, is among past pipers who have opened up about the job.

The 5ft 6in tall player said the Queen teased him about his height, despite the monarch measuring only 5ft 3in.

He said: “She once joked that I was the first piper to hold the post whom she didn’t have to look up to – a jibe at my 5ft 6in height.”

The piper, who has now left the Army and teaches bagpipes and was referred to as “Pipes” by the Queen, also told The Spectator how the wind once blew up his kilt – “briefly exposing” for wearing the outfit as a “true Scotsman”, without underwear.

He added about the monarch’s subsequent joke about the incident: “Later, while I was escorting Her Majesty, she asked me if it had been a particularly cold morning.”

When his wife was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2017, the Queen ensured his two young children were cared for by royal nannies at Balmoral while their mother was in hospital.

He also told how during his duty, the then-Prince Charles would jokingly ask him to play the theme from ‘Top Gun’ and if he could play AC/DC’s ‘Thunderstruck’.

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