Prince William will travel to Istanbul to watch his beloved Aston Villa take on Freiburg in the UEFA Europa League final, according to actor Matt Lucas.
The Little Britain star, who received an OBE for services to drama at Windsor Castle on Tuesday, May 19, said the Prince of Wales confirmed the news to him during the ceremony.
Lucas, 52, revealed that William told him he would be at the game in Istanbul on Wednesday, May 20. The comedian said: 'I asked him about football and whether he would be able to get to the cup final tomorrow that Aston Villa are playing in and he said he can. He asked me what I was up to workwise and said some kind things about my work.'
Matt Lucas Receives OBE
Lucas was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to drama. He is preparing for his next role as Monsieur Thenardier in the Les Miserables: The Arena Spectacular tour but took a day off to attend the investiture.
Lucas said: 'I've done the show in different forms, you know, in the original production, in the more recent production, in the West End and the concert version. It is a lovely thing to come back to and try and find new sides to the character each time and try to bring something else to it each time. I have worked alongside a lot of different actors playing Madame Thenardier, so obviously the dynamic changes every time you are with somebody new, so it's always enjoyable to explore that.'
Teenage darts prodigy Luke Littler and Wicked star Cynthia Erivo were also among the stars honoured at Tuesday's ceremony.
Aston Villa's Historic Final
Aston Villa are aiming to lift their first major trophy in 30 years. It has been 44 years since Villa won the European Cup by beating Bayern Munich in Rotterdam, while their last major trophy win was the League Cup in 1996.
Villa booked their place in the final with a 4-1 aggregate win over Nottingham Forest in the semi-finals.
