King Charles teams up with Idris Elba in documentary about knife crime

King Charles will appear in a new documentary addressing the root causes of knife crime alongside Idris Elba - Hollywood star, anti-knife activist and... Prince Harry's wedding DJ. 

In the upcoming BBC documentary entitled 'Idris Elba: A Year of Knife Crime', the monarch will be seen meeting The Wire actor to discuss solutions to the burgeoning problem of knife crime in the UK.

Charles, 75, and Idris, 52, will also be joined by some of the youngsters most affected by youth violence. 

Idris said: 'So many people dismiss knife crime as something that doesn't affect them, assuming it's a black and brown urban and gang-related problem - but this couldn't be further from the truth. 

'White, middle class and rural areas are also affected, perpetrators are getting younger and fear is spreading. 

'I hope our film goes some way towards changing these stereotypes and getting everyone to engage with one of the biggest challenges of our time.'

Their meeting in the documentary, which is due to air in early 2025, will not be the first time the King and the award-winning actor have joined forces.

In July of this year, the pair met at St James's Palace where they discussed the future of The King's Trust, of which the legendary actor is an alum. 

Discussions ranged from the charity's ongoing work to support young people to how it can continue creating positive opportunities and initiatives which might help address youth violence in the UK. 

Both are also pledging to work together on a new 'Creative Futures' initiative, to inspire young people through the arts and support them into jobs in the creative industries.

Idris and Charles also joined in on a roundtable discussion - where Prime Minister Keir Starmer was also present - with people from youth organisations to hear their reflections.

As a teenager, Idris was given a £1,500 grant by The then-Prince's Trust to go to the National Youth Music Theatre - and has since become an international superstar.

And it's not the only link he has to the royals - in 2018, the star also DJ'd at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding.

In 2020, Idris was also among the group of celebrities and creatives to thank the Prince's Trust in a video released by the charity - to celebrate helping one million young people.

In the clip the actor credited the Trust with giving him the start he needed to launch his now blockbuster career.

'When I was about 18 years old, I had the wonderful experience of auditioning for The Prince's Trust,' he revealed.

'I was awarded £1,500 by The Prince's Trust that gave me my start and my career.'

'Idris Elba: A Year of Knife Crime' will also feature Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Before Labour came to power, Sir Keir had promised his government would commit to halving knife crime if elected. 

On July 9, Idris attended a summit at Downing Street with Sir Keir and spoke passionately about his campaigning on the issue of knife crime. 

Memorably, Idris said he wants to make sure his 10-year-old son never experiences knife crime. 

The gathering was organised to launch a coalition aiming to stop young people from being dragged into violent gangs.

Idris's commitment to the issue is born out of his own life experiences - he faced crossroads in his life as a teenager and knows how easy it would have been to go down a different path.

Growing up in what he describes as a tough part of east London, violence was always a possibility. 

Eager to understand why knife crime is still persistent despite some efforts to combat it, the actor will look at the causes of knife crime.

The documentary will  ask why someone chooses to carry a knife and examine the effect of school exclusions and the influence of social media.