Prince Charles has recalled his “special memories” of meeting Barbra Streisand – and named her performance of Don’t Rain on My Parade among his favourite songs.
In a programme recorded for the Hospital Broadcasting Association as part of today’s National Thank You Day, celebrating heroes of the pandemic, the Prince recalled seeing Streisand perform at Warner Bros Studios in California when he served as a young lieutenant on HMS Jupiter in the 1970s.
The Prince said “he had always been a great admirer of the incredibly versatile American actress and singer”.
When Royal Navy duties took him to the US Navy’s base in San Diego, he heard that Streisand was filming Funny Lady at Warner Bros.
“I was lucky enough to visit the set and to meet her there”.
The pair became friends, Streisand performing at a 1994 Wembley fundraiser in aid of the Prince’s Trust.
She jokingly told her audience at her 2019 Hyde Park concert: “If I had played my cards right, I could have been the first Jewish princess.”
Don’t Rain on My Parade is from the musical Funny Girl, which won her the Oscar for best actress in 1969.
Streisand is not the only Jewish singer admired by the royal. In a Radio 3 programme marking his 70th birthday in 2018, the Prince said he had always loved the voice of Leonard Cohen and the “incredibly sophisticated” way he wrote.
