Vogue’s Edward Enninful pays gushing tribute to King Charles in TIME 100 influential people list
The Coronation weekend will be held between Saturday 6 and Monday 8 May 2023. (Chris Jackson – WPA Pool /Getty Images)
British Vogue editor Edward Enninful has paid tribute to King Charles as the monarch was named one of TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world.
TIME paired the honourees with contributors who wrote about their cultural impact.
Enninful, who married his long-term partner Alec Maxwell last year, said: “Growing up on a council estate in West London, the world of royalty was one I didn’t pay much mind to. What would that have to do with young Black boys in Ladbroke Grove?
“Much more than I realised, it turned out,” he added.
Saying the king “is not always what people expect him to be”, Enninful went on to praise the monarch’s work with the Prince’s Trust, which put “friends and family into employment” and “inspired” with outreach programmes.
“He could’ve let his privilege shield him from the realities of hardship in a time when these were not a cause célèbre… but he always met us with an open mind and a listening ear.”
Enninful, a global ambassador for the trust, said that Charles has a “kindness that always seeks to put others at ease”, and called him charming, funny and socially confident.
“The monarchy is not perfect, but in Charles we have a king who understands both tradition and what it takes to evolve with the times. It is a delicate balance and a rare ability… I am excited to see him carry his passions into a whole new era.”
In a significant gesture for the LGBTQ+ community, GLAAD’s chief executive, Sarah Kate Ellis, was also honoured as one of the most influential people – with actress Patricia Arquette praising her for standing up against “hateful” homophobic rhetoric.
“Amid the introduction of more than 450 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in 2023 alone, Sarah Kate has made clear how this type of legislation negatively impacts the LGBTQ+ community and causes violence,” Arquette wrote.
“LGBTQ+ people have always been treated by some as different and fearsome, and Sarah Kate, through her work and her beautiful example, has long stood up for what’s right.”
Others to be honoured included the internet’s “daddy” actor Pedro Pascal, Brittney Griner, a basketball player who was recently released from prison in Russia, and bisexual actress Aubrey Plaza.
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