'Your gorgeousness'

Not many people would dare to tease the Prince of Wales in front of an audience of hundreds. But Stephen Fry did just that, referring to His Royal Highness as "your gorgeousness" at the premiere of his social satire Bright Young Things.

He greeted the prince at the Odeon Leicester Square then stepped on stage to make a series of jokes at his expense.

Referring to the Prince's Trust, he said: "Twenty-seven years ago, a man had an amazing idea - standing naked..." before correcting himself and paying tribute to Prince Charles's work for disadvantaged young people.

He then went on to introduce the prince as "your gorgeousness" to laughter from the audience, including Charles himself.

Fry, 46, who is an ambassador for the Prince's Trust, said later he was relieved to see the Prince "roaring with laughter" throughout the film, which marks his directorial debut.

"We have been friends for a long time but it was such a relief," he said. "We are very grateful to him for coming along and giving the film a good kick-start. I was having this terrible dream where nobody turned up and the Prince was asking: 'Are you sure I am meant to be here?'"

Fry adapted Bright Young Things from the novel Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh, a comedy that centres on an elite and destructive young party set in Thirties' London.

The film, which nearly had to be abandoned after the collapse of Film Four, features British actors Sir John Mills, 95, who plays a coke-snorting member of the upper classes, Jim Broadbent and Peter O'Toole, as well as American star Dan Aykroyd.

Aykroyd, who plays a temperamental newspaper editor, said: "The British aristocracy is so awful. This country has a lot more to offer."

But the young set are mostly newcomers, including the lead character Adam, who is played by Stephen Campbell Moore. His love interest is played by Emily Mortimer.

The premiere, held in aid of the Prince's Trust, was attended by Minnie Driver, Rowan Atkinson, Gary Rhodes, Tracey Emin and Nigella Lawson.