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David and Samantha Cameron were guests of honour at a glittering lunch hosted by Vice-President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the State Department today.
The occasion gave Mr Cameron the chance to tell a few jokes at his own expense, and Samantha the opportunity to meet one of her Hollywood heroes.
Among the guests beneath the sparkling chandeliers of the State Department's Benjamin Franklin Room were former presidential candidate John Kerry, ex-secretary of state Colin Powell and fashion queen Anna Wintour.
But Mr Cameron revealed that Samantha - dressed in the same turquoise and blue outfit she had worn at the official White House welcome earlier today - was more excited by another name on the guest list.
"We were looking through the guest list last night in bed and Samantha said 'the star from my favourite movie is going to be there'," said the Prime Minister.
"I said 'Is is Ben Kingsley from Gandhi or Peter O'Toole from Lawrence of Arabia?' No, it's Chevy Chase from Caddyshack."
Mr Cameron joked that he and President Barack Obama had chosen the wrong gifts to exchange earlier today.
"I gave him a table tennis table and he gave me a barbecue, but when you see us standing next to each other, it's quite clear that the person who needs the exercise is the British Prime Minister and the person who needs the barbecue is the President," he told guests.
Mr Cameron has been pursued throughout his trip to Washington by reminders that he is visiting on the 200th anniversary of the 1812 war in which British troops burnt down the White House.
He told guests that he had asked historian friend Andrew Roberts why the British did not remember the conflict as vividly as the Americans, and won laughs when he recounted the reply: "Of course, we are coming up to the 200th anniversary of the battle of Waterloo and we so much more enjoy talking about defeating the French than fighting the Americans."
Cameron: "I gave him a table tennis table and he gave me a barbecue"
Mr Cameron paid warm tribute to Mr Biden and Mrs Clinton, offering particular praise to the Secretary of State for her part in "one of the greatest pieces of unfinished business in human history - the emancipation and empowerment of women".
And Mrs Clinton hailed the special relationship between Britain and the US, telling Mr Cameron: "No matter what the issue, we stand together."
Mr Biden said that visits by British prime ministers to the USA were "more like a family gathering", and raised a toast to what he described as "the enduring special relationship between us".
The lunch was cooked by British chef April Bloomfield, originally from Birmingham, who made a name for herself at fashionable New York restaurants the Spotted Pig and the Breslin.
The menu for the lunch was:
Poached pear, kale and escarole salad, with crispy quinoa, mountain Gorgonzola dressing, candied walnuts and toasted almonds.
Slow-cooked Atlantic salmon with herbed lentils, roasted fennel, cauliflower and petite carrots.
Almond and orange cake with candied kumquats and whipped creme fraiche.
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PA/Huffington Post UK | By | Posted: 14/03/2012 19:30 Updated: 14/03/2012 21:25