Lauren Sanchez shares a look inside Gayle King’s star-studded surprise party… and reveals who planned it

Lauren Sánchez revealed that Oprah Winfrey was behind Gayle King’s star-studded surprise birthday party.

King, the star personality on CBS News and editor of Oprah Daily, unwittingly walked into an early birthday celebration Friday night — two weeks before her 70th birthday on Dec. 28.

The internet got a sneak peek into the night after Sánchez – the 54-year-old former New Anchor engaged to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos – shared two posts with her social media followers.

In a video posted on Sánchez’s Instagram Stories, at least 100 people were seen standing side by side in an elegant lounge singing ‘happy birthday’ to the beloved CBS Morning co-host.

“Happy birthday @gayleking, @Oprah you nailed it,” the caption read, accompanied by a smiley face and red heart emoji.

But it wouldn’t be a real birthday party without a few tequila shots.

Sánchez took a picture of a wooden, four-level bar cart topped with tequila shots dressed with a lime to take.

Behind the 1.5-ounce glasses was a small cartoon cutout of King wearing a yellow dress with a martini in hand.

The cartoon King was attached to a small pink banner that read: ‘Let’s Toast To Gayle!’

Luckily, Oprah delivered the one moment the internet wanted to see — Gayle unknowingly walking into her own party.

In the video, which was shared to Instagram early Saturday afternoon, King can be seen in a teal three-quarter sleeve maxi dress paired with matching heels as she walked alongside the legendary talk show host, who was wearing a mustard yellow jumpsuit.

King and Oprah were captured chatting as they walked through the lounge — all while King appeared oblivious to the large group of famous faces right in front of her.

But a second later, the crowd can be heard loudly shouting ‘surprise!’ – sending distinct shockwaves through the birthday girl.

She was so startled that she dropped her bag on the table next to her, while simultaneously taking a few steps back and clutching both hands to her heart.

The partygoers continued to cheer on King, whose mouth was still open in shock as she looked around at all the people gathered right in front of her.

Her arrival prompted congratulations with the birthday song, which elicited an emotional response from King, who held her hands over her mouth.

“My best friend of 50 years is turning 70 so we gathered everyone who loved her to celebrate,” Oprah captioned the video. “It’s hard to surprise her.”

“Oh, the stories we’ve made up, the lies we’ve told to keep this a secret,” she added. ‘Happy birthday @gayleking sorry we almost gave you a heart attack.’

Earlier this year, Oprah marked the same milestone birthday, although the celebration was much more low-key.

She spent her birthday in the winter season with a run on the beach – and documented the moment to Instagram, where she hash-tagged: #healthisthebedstegave.

King celebrated the big day by posting a precious video that captured the mogul spending some quality time with King’s grandson during a vacation.

‘Happy to say @oprah at 70 is still a very good reader!’ King wrote in the caption.

“Although favorite grandson Luca is too young to understand how special this moment was during the Christmas holidays, it is not lost on me.”

“When asked how she wanted to spend her birthday, she said, ‘No presents, no parties, no surprises!'” King added.

‘Her preference was to sit by the fire with a good book and enjoy the scent of her life! Happy Birthday Oprah!’

Little did King know that her boyfriend would celebrate her birthday with the same things she denied herself eleven months earlier.

It’s safe to say that King’s 70th birthday will be one she’ll never forget.