King Charles III Joins Elton John’s Rocket Hour for The King’s Trust Anniversary Special

King Charles III is set to appear alongside Elton John for a special edition of Rocket Hour on Apple Music 1, built around the 50th anniversary of The King’s Trust. The programme premieres at 9 a.m. GMT on November 14, which is also the King’s 78th birthday, and will be available to hear free on Apple Music 1.

Recorded during Charles’s October visit to Apple Music’s London studios, the conversation looks back at the artists, concerts and musical connections associated with the charity across its history. It also arrives as Apple and The King’s Trust broaden their work around creative technology education, including new Creative Labs workshops for adults aged 18 to 30.

For listeners, the basic premise is more specific than a celebrity music-chat crossover. John has hosted Rocket Hour since 2015, using it to introduce emerging performers as well as play established names. Charles previously presented his own Apple Music broadcast, The King’s Music Room, in March 2025. That Buckingham Palace-recorded programme focused on Commonwealth artists and the personal meaning of selected songs. This new appearance puts the emphasis on the Trust’s relationship with music, fundraising and young people’s opportunities.

A broadcast centred on artists and charitable support

Charles and John discuss events held at major London venues, including Wembley Arena and the Royal Albert Hall. Those concerts form part of the broader story of how music has helped raise funds for the organisation.

One of the most concrete examples involves Muse. Before the group became known by that name, its members performed as Rocket Baby Dolls and received a grant to purchase sound equipment. The band later returned to support the organisation by playing a fundraising concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 2018.

That detail is useful because it connects charitable assistance with a practical need rather than an abstract endorsement. Equipment can be a barrier for a developing act, and the Trust’s earlier grant helped the then-young band obtain tools to make music. The later Royal Albert Hall performance, meanwhile, illustrates the long arc that a charity relationship can take: early support, professional success, and a subsequent fundraising contribution.

The special’s selections also include Raye and Skye Newman. Their inclusion is consistent with the format John has established for Rocket Hour, which makes room for newer artists alongside more familiar ones. The supplied programme details do not specify which tracks will be played or the exact structure of the discussion, so listeners should view the announced names as part of the episode’s musical lineup rather than a confirmed full playlist.

When and where to listen

The first broadcast is scheduled for Saturday, November 14 at 9 a.m. GMT on Apple Music 1. Further Saturday airings are listed for 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. GMT. Sunday repeats are scheduled at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. GMT across Apple Music 1 and Apple Music Hits.

• Premiere: Saturday, November 14, 9 a.m. GMT on Apple Music 1
• Additional Saturday broadcasts: 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. GMT
• Sunday repeats: 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. GMT on Apple Music 1 and Apple Music Hits
• Access: free on Apple Music 1

Apple Music 1 is Apple’s global live radio station. In this case, “free” refers to the stated availability of the special through that station, rather than suggesting that every Apple Music feature is offered without a subscription. The repeat schedule gives people outside the initial morning slot several ways to catch the show, although listeners will want to check the relevant station’s schedule for the precise Sunday placement.

The Creative Labs connection

The studio recording coincided with the introduction of Apple x King’s Trust Creative Labs, an education initiative designed to give young adults practical exposure to creative technology. Up to 20 participants aged from 18 to 30 take part in workshops that explore potential career directions. The first sessions were held in October and focused on music and creative industries.

“Creative technology” is a broad phrase, but its meaning here is grounded in the programme’s stated focus: hands-on work and career exploration where technology intersects with creative fields. The available information does not identify specific software, devices, qualifications or outcomes, so it would be premature to describe the labs as a particular production or coding course. What is clear is that the scheme is intended to connect participants with practical experience and possible careers, beginning with music-related and creative-industry sessions.

The age range also matters. This is not described as a school programme; it is aimed at young adults between 18 and 30. With room for up to 20 people, the workshops appear designed as a relatively small-participant setting rather than a mass online initiative. Small cohorts can make discussion and practical participation more manageable, although no claims about instruction format or individual mentoring have been announced.

Apple has supported The King’s Trust since 2019 through existing technology and coding-education efforts. The partners are additionally working on resources intended to help educators and young people develop their understanding of AI.

Here, AI means artificial intelligence: computer systems that can perform tasks associated with analysing information, generating content or identifying patterns. The announced work is about building understanding, not a claim that the Creative Labs themselves are exclusively AI programmes. That distinction matters. AI literacy can involve learning what these systems do, where their limits sit and how to approach them responsibly, while practical creative-technology education can extend across music, production, coding and other fields.

Charles visited Apple’s UK headquarters in December 2024, where young people supported by the Trust demonstrated coding projects. That earlier visit provides a direct link between the partnership’s educational focus and the newer Creative Labs initiative. For readers following Apple’s wider activity beyond consumer hardware, it is another example of the company pairing its technology and educational resources with a youth-focused organisation. Apple’s product plans remain a separate topic, as covered in this report on the expected timing for future iPhone models.

Why the London studio matters

The episode was recorded in Apple Music’s London facilities, announced in September alongside Apple Music Hall at Battersea Power Station. The expansion pairs new radio studios with a 600-capacity performance space. It is designed to capture concerts in Spatial Audio and produce video for broadcasts.

Spatial Audio is a presentation format intended to create a more immersive, three-dimensional sense of sound than conventional stereo playback. Its inclusion in the venue’s capabilities points to a production setup built for recorded live performances as well as radio conversation. The provided information does not say that the King Charles and Elton John episode itself was recorded in Spatial Audio, nor does it identify any concert recording tied to the special. It simply establishes what the new performance venue is equipped to support.

Likewise, the ability to produce video for broadcasts suggests the site has a role beyond audio-only radio. But there is no announced video edition of this Rocket Hour episode in the available details. The important confirmed point is the setting: the special was recorded during the King’s October visit to the London studios, within an expanded Apple Music production footprint at Battersea Power Station.

How this fits Apple Music’s recent work with the King

The special is Charles’s second identified Apple Music project after The King’s Music Room. That March 2025 programme used a personal-song-selection format, with the King discussing music from Commonwealth artists. The forthcoming appearance changes the frame from an individual playlist and personal anecdotes to a shared conversation with one of Britain’s most recognisable musicians, tied to the anniversary of the King’s Trust.

It also gives John’s long-running show a charitable focal point without changing what makes Rocket Hour distinctive: a host known for championing artists across generations. The Muse story supplies an especially clear bridge between the station’s artist-discovery identity and the Trust’s mission of helping young people access opportunities.

In practical terms, the November 14 broadcast offers a compact way to trace several related threads: the Trust’s 50-year milestone, the role fundraising concerts have played in its history, the support it has provided to developing musicians, and its current collaboration with Apple around creative technology and AI learning resources. The episode will also put Raye and Skye Newman alongside that history, ensuring the programme is not solely retrospective.

With its free Apple Music 1 airing and multiple repeat slots, the special is structured to reach listeners beyond a single live premiere. For those interested in music programming, charity-backed creative education or Apple Music’s growing London production operation, November 14 is the date to note.