It actually is possible to shock the woman who has everything.
Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King have been friendship goals for decades now, but they continue to surprise us — and each other! — with how their bond evolves through the years.
The latest example came during a magical vacation to Italy. If you followed along on Instagram, you already know just how fantastic it was. Along with travel partners Ava DuVernay and King’s daughter Kirby Bumpus, the longtime besties enjoyed visits to the Vatican, the Colosseum, the famed Palazzo Fiuggi spa, and much more. But one of the most memorable parts of the trip was something Oprah didn’t expect at all.
The duo shared the story in the latest episode of their Oprah Daily video series “The OG Chronicles,” which features them answering fans’ burning questions about going on vacation. After pontificating on complicated questions like how to deal with a perpetually late friend and what to do during a vacation with a constantly complaining mother-in-law, they’re asked about the greatest trips they’ve taken together, which leads to the story of Gayle’s fabulous surprise for her BFF during what sounds like a pretty incredible shopping spree.
“I was going to my favorite store, and they had pulled out racks of things,” Oprah recalled. “I was buying things, and at the end, when I went up to pay the bill, they said Gayle had already paid.”
We know what you might be thinking: Is it really that notable that one celebrity friend paid for another’s haul during a pricy jaunt through a luxury store? But it actually did mean a whole lot to the queen of giveaways because of the gesture it represented.
“I’ve always paid for everything for everybody, all the time, forever and forever more,” Oprah said. (Considering she’s worth about $2.5 billion, that’s not exactly surprising.) “[Gayle’s gift] was so memorable for me because I’ve done a lot of shopping sprees for other people and nobody’s ever done one for me.”
Gayle explained that she’d offered to pay for her and her daughter’s part of the Italy trip, but as usual, Oprah’s response was “absolutely not.” That’s when Gayle came up with the idea to treat her friend to something special — and she kept it a secret until the very last minute so the offering would have maximum impact.
“I didn’t tell her ahead of time because I knew she would start editing [and make fewer purchases], and I didn’t want that,” Gayle said. “I was so happy to be able to do that because I’ve never been able to.”
It sounds like Gayle’s success with CBS Mornings and her upcoming primetime series with Charles Barkley had something to do with it: “Now Gayle is on CBS and CNN,” Oprah quipped.
The story is a fun window into what it’s like to travel like a celebrity, but it’s also an important reminder that showing gratitude can come in many forms, and you never know how deeply a thoughtful token of friendship might impact someone else.
Now, we’re not expecting anyone to take us on a luxury shopping spree anytime soon, but if a friend wanted to give us the gift of grilling up Oprah’s favorite turkey burger recipe this summer, we certainly wouldn’t say no to that…
