Prince William sparks unexpected reaction after latest royal outing
Prince William caused a stir on Thursday when he stepped out sporting a slickly trimmed beard on his first engagement since the summer holidays.
The future King, 42, paid a visit to the Homelessness: Reframed exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery in London. Royal fans were delighted to see the return of William's bristly face, as seen earlier this month when he and the Princess of Wales were filmed in a congratulatory video for Team GB after the Olympics. See the video below.
Now, royal fans have taken to social media to show their appreciation for the royal's decision to bring back the beard.
One fan wrote: "William's beard is back, and he's never looked better! Let's hope he keeps the razor away this time ... because this glow-up is [fire emoji]."
A second added: "Just how handsome is our King-to-be, Prince William, The Prince of Wales. Do you like the beard?" Meanwhile, a third penned: "HOT."
Ahead of his engagement, William shared on social media: "Looking forward to today's visit to @homewardsuk's Homelessness: Reframed exhibition at @saatchi_gallery."
The gallery features sculptures, photographs, and everyday objects given new life by artists who may have experienced homelessness, in a bid to tell personal stories and provide a fresh perspective on the issue.
Earlier, William was clean-shaven when he and his family were pictured arriving at Crathie Kirk to attend a Sunday service.
The appearance marked Kate's first at the Scottish church since announcing her cancer diagnosis in March. She and William were joined by King Charles and Queen Camilla, as well as the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, James, Earl of Wessex, and Sir Tim Laurence.
Bearded brothers
While many members of the royal family have sported beards over the years, according to Prince Harry, William was less than impressed when the Duke decided to sport a beard on his wedding day.
Harry wrote in his tell-all memoir Spare: "I explained it to my brother, and he… bristled? 'Not the done thing,' he said. 'Military, rules, so forth.' I gave him a quick history lesson. I mentioned the many royals who'd been bearded. King Edward VII. King George V. Prince Albert. More recently, Prince Michael of Kent. Helpfully, I referred him to Google Images. 'Not the same,' he said. When I informed him that his opinion didn't really matter, since I'd already gone to Granny and got the green light, he became livid.
"After he'd come back from an assignment with Special Forces, Willy was sporting a full beard, and someone told him to be a good boy, run along and shave it. He hated the idea of me enjoying a perk he'd been denied," Harry wrote, which he said led him to become "angrier and angrier".
