The Prince of Wales made a surprise television appearance on a special Earthshot Prize edition of The Graham Norton Show.
Graham Norton was chatting with celebrity guests Cate Blanchett, Robert Irwin and Hannah Waddingham during the pre-recorded episode when William suddenly appeared as an unexpected guest.
The audience responded with cheers and gasps as William, who founded The Earthshot Prize in 2020, became the first royal to take a seat on Norton’s famous sofa.
The conversation centred largely on the work of The Earthshot Prize, but William also discussed his family’s enthusiasm for Celebrity Traitors, revealing that Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis are particularly keen viewers. He also spoke about his support for Aston Villa and his appreciation of Christopher Nolan’s films.
The episode, which includes a performance by singer Jorja Smith, will be broadcast on BBC One tomorrow at 10.40pm.
Before William’s arrival, Norton spoke with Blanchett, a member of the Earthshot Prize Council; Irwin, the organisation’s global ambassador; and Waddingham, who hosted the 2023 Earthshot Prize Awards in Singapore, about their involvement with the initiative.
Norton then pointed out that The Earthshot Prize was the link between all three guests, before using the moment to introduce William.
William is not the first royal to appear on a chat show. Princess Anne was a guest on The Wogan Show in 1985, while the late Prince Philip appeared on the programme the following year.
The Prince of Wales made a surprise appearance on a special Earthshot Prize edition of The Graham Norton Show
William laughed with host Graham Norton as he reached for the handle to tip the ‘Red Chair’
William appeared unexpectedly while Graham Norton was speaking with Cate Blanchett, Robert Irwin and Hannah Waddingham during the pre-recorded episode
The programme, featuring a performance from Jorja Smith, will air tomorrow on BBC One at 10.40pm
The Prince and Princess of Wales’s official Instagram account had hinted at the appearance by sharing a photograph of William sitting on the well-known sofa in a blue suit.
The post tagged both The Graham Norton Show and The Earthshot Prize, accompanied by two eye emojis.
William’s appearance came just days after his estranged brother, Harry, gave an interview to GQ.
During the 42-minute conversation, Harry said that repairing relations with his family was “the most important thing” to him. He also appeared to take a swipe at his brother, saying that “some people don’t want it to work out.”
The release of the interview prompted accusations that it had overshadowed an important occasion for the royal family, as they welcomed the Sultan of Oman to Windsor.
Early press materials offer no indication that William addressed those comments during the episode.
Instead, William was confirmed to have joined Norton to discuss how The Earthshot Prize began, as well as the need for urgency and optimism in the fight against climate change.
Asked how The Earthshot Prize came about, he explained: “For many years I was hearing stories about environment issues and one thing that struck me was the negativity and doom which got me down.”
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‘I thought we could do something more powerful and more optimistic and the idea of an awards’ ceremony came about and we could talk about urgency and optimism together. It’s all about getting excited.
‘There are some amazing people out there doing things to protect the world. We could really highlight what is being done and scale them to the next level to have more impact around the world.’
He also highlighted the Prize’s role in identifying and supporting innovators around the world and helping them scale solutions for greater impact.
The picture shared to the Prince and Princess of Wales’s official Instagram
Cate Blanchett during filming for the Graham Norton Show called The Earthshot Prize a ‘tapestry of solutions’
Robert Irwin spoke about Earthshot’s role in inspiring young people and building a new generation of environmental advocates
Hannah Waddingham highlighted the support offered to all Finalists and Earthshot’s ability to connect innovators with the expertise, networks and investment needed to grow their impact
Jorja Smith took to the stage to perform on The Graham Norton Show
Last week, William kicked off the countdown to the Prize in Mumbai on November 17 by playing cricket in The Mall with some of India’s cricketing legends
The Prince emphasised that climate change can not be tackled by a single person or initiative and explained why Earthshot can bring together a global coalition of innovators, investors and advocates.
Blanchett called The Earthshot Prize a ‘tapestry of solutions’, while Waddingham highlighted the support offered to all Finalists and Earthshot’s ability to connect innovators with the expertise, networks and investment needed to grow their impact.
Irwin spoke about Earthshot’s role in inspiring young people and building a new generation of environmental advocates.
Last week, William kicked off the countdown to the Prize in Mumbai on November 17 by playing cricket in The Mall with some of Britain’s and India’s cricketing legends.
William was joined by homegrown test captain Joe Root, India’s former national team captains Ajinkya Rahane and Sourav Ganguly, and West Indies hero Brian Lara.
Their verdict? William was a ‘pretty good batter’ whose ‘bowling needs a bit of work’.
And the scenery? ‘There are some wonderful backdrops in cricket, but none quite like Buckingham Palace,’ said Root.
England women’s captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, England white-ball captain Harry Brook and radio host Greg James also joined in the fun at the ‘Cricket on The Mall’.
The Earthshot event in November will bring together more than 5,000 participants and will be streamed on Prime Video.
It is expected to reach the largest global audience in Earthshot’s history, with the event being streamed in more than 40 languages across 240 countries.