Britain's first Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, is believed to have observed the supernova that spawned it in 1680.
Astronomer Royal Martin Rees has publicly offered a bet that a biological catastrophe-accidental or intentional-will kill at least one million people by 2020 (so far, no takers).
I got two letters from the Astronomer Royal thanking me for writing about meteors.
The Astronomer Royal, who ought to know, tells me that the earth is round.