Danny Dyer was delighted to receive a letter from his "cousin" Prince Charles welcoming him to the family.

Danny Dyer

Danny Dyer

The 'EastEnders' actor surprisingly discovered he is distantly related to King Edward III and William The Conqueror during a 2016 appearance on 'Who Do You Think You Are?, and his wife Joanne Mas has revealed he was pleased to receive a note from Charles, who is next in line to the throne.

She is quoted by the Daily Star newspaper as saying: "I can't really say too much, but Prince Charles wrote to Danny.

"When he got the letter he was like, 'Look at me - he's my cousin.' "

It's not the first time Danny has been in contact with Charles since he discovered his royal heritage.

The 'Football Factory' actor shook hands with the future king at a Prince's Trust event in March and appeared delighted to tell the Prince of Wales that they were related.

He told the 70-year-old prince: "Just wanted to let you know we're related."

Charles seemed slightly surprised and one of his aides chuckled.

In January, Danny - who plays pub landlord Mick Carter on the BBC One soap - admitted he thinks the Royal Family see him as one of their "embarrassing cousins they don't want to acknowledge".

He said at the time: "I haven't heard anything from the Royal Family. I'm clearly one of their embarrassing cousins they've got but don't want to acknowledge.

"I could be mixing in those circles. I don't know it would be nice if they did want to acknowledge it. Maybe one day.

"I heard the queen is a fan of 'EastEnders' though. I heard she always watches the Christmas special, which is nice I suppose."

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