Charles meets blast soldier as he joins charity curry lunch

Hundreds of diners sat down to popadoms, pilau rice and Tandoori chicken at the City of London's Guildhall in aid of ABF The Soldiers' Charity – formerly the Army Benevolent Fund.

Charles, who is known to rarely eat lunch, did not sample the food but chatted to soldiers and City figures in the building's historic Great Hall.

Diners paid 95 a head at the Lord Mayor's Big Curry Lunch, now in its third year, and hosted by current Lord Mayor Nick Anstee.

Some of the servicemen and their families who have been helped by the ABF were introduced to the Prince during his visit.

Among them was Yorkshire soldier Lance Bombardier Ben Parkinson, 26, who lost both his legs and suffered brain damage when the Land Rover he was travelling in struck a Taliban landmine in Helmand Province in 2006.

The charity paid for a 4,500 gym for his bungalow in Doncaster, something his family say they would have found very difficult to afford.

His mother Diane Dernie, 52, who spoke for her son, said: "It's made all the difference in the world. Soldiers are not like everybody else, they are fit and want to stay fit.

"We've had the gym 10 months now and he's lost a stone and has got really strong."