If you’ve ever wondered whether the Austin Powers comedy movies are popular in England: they are, and hugely so. During a recent visit to The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, Mike Myers, who plays Austin Powers in the thriller movies, remembered getting a tribute from Buckingham Palace.
Myers was invited to the palace to see the changing of the guard, a procedure where King’s Guard and the New Guard change places. It’s a very regal process, and a friend of his managed to get them inside the palace gates. Myers’s family are from Liverpool, making it quite the honour, though the honour wasn’t entirely his.
“The band comes out, and I’m like, ‘Oh this is so amazing’, and then they break into the Austin Powers theme,” Myers says. “They started playing ‘Soul Bossa Nova’, and I couldn’t believe it. And then one of the guards walks by, holding a flag and they’re not supposed to talk, but he goes, ‘Oh I bet you’ve heard this song before Mr Myers!'”
Obviously, it was a glorious moment, and something that must’ve been very special for Myers since it honoured some of his best movies, and his heritage at once. That said, he didn’t entirely love being interacted with like that.
“I’m like, ‘Don’t talk to me, don’t talk! I’m Canadian, I’m going to get in trouble!'” he says, laughing. Thankfully, nobody had any issues, and it sounds like it was just a pleasant afternoon.
Myers portrayed Austin Powers, a satire of James Bond, in three spy movies from the late ’90s to the early 2000s. The trilogy contains not one but two of his major roles, as he plays central villain Dr Evil too. The last instalment, Austin Powers in Goldmember, came out in 2002, some 20 years ago.
When asked by Fallon if Austin Powers 4 is possible, Myers simply says that he’d love to, but has nothing to announce. If that does happen, King Charles should have definitely him around. For films that are definitely happening, check out our guide to the 2023 movies we can’t wait for.