Prince William made a surprise appearance on The Graham Norton Show, where he recounted a humorous incident in which a member of the public confused him with the legendary musician Prince.
The Prince of Wales joined Cate Blanchett, Robert Irwin and Hannah Waddingham on the sofa, all of whom are involved with the Earthshot Prize initiative. Norton initially spoke only with the three guests before unexpectedly introducing William, prompting a dramatic entrance that caught the audience off guard.
A Case of Mistaken Identity
Before discussing the urgency of addressing climate change, William shared the anecdote that left the studio audience laughing. Norton remarked: "Recently you were at an event and someone didn't know who you were?"
William replied: "Yes, that happens quite regularly actually. I went to a place in Somerset and was looking around some of the local communities there and one lovely gentleman looked up at me from his seat and said 'when are you going to sing?' and I looked at him, I've had many requests over many years for all ranging parts of society and I said 'I'm sorry what do you mean?' he goes 'when are you going to sing your performance?'"
He continued: "And a lady behind tapped his arm and went 'no, no he's not that prince.' It turned out he wanted me to sing Purple Rain - which I don't know the lyrics for."
Earthshot Prize in Mumbai
Next month, Mumbai will host the Earthshot Prize, where William will encounter Bollywood luminaries, interact with cricketing legends and oversee the awards ceremony distributing £5million in funding to those proposing solutions to restore the planet.
William also discussed the genesis of the Earthshot Prize and its role in discovering and backing innovators globally. He said: "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."
"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."
Support from Guests
Blanchett, who sits on the Earthshot Prize council, characterised the Prize as a "tapestry of solutions", while Irwin, serving as a global ambassador for the initiative, highlighted the prize's contribution towards cultivating a fresh generation of environmental champions.
William's Earthshot Prize venture has reached the midpoint of its decade-spanning programme to acknowledge and celebrate challenges and innovations aimed at preserving the planet, with ceremonies previously held in London, Singapore, Cape Town, Boston and Rio de Janeiro. The episode aired on BBC One at 10:40pm on Oct. 23, 2026.
