The BBC is facing a backlash after Prince William appeared on The Graham Norton Show, with campaign group Republic claiming the broadcaster breached its own rules. Hundreds of complaints have been reported regarding the heir apparent's appearance on the popular chat show.
Prince William's Chat Show Appearance
Prince William, 44, sat down on the famous red sofa to discuss the Earthshot Prize, the Prince of Wales's environmental award honouring green innovation, which was established in 2019. The episode aired late last month and featured actors Cate Blanchett and Hannah Waddingham, along with Australian environmentalist Robert Irwin, all of whom are involved with the prize; Irwin serves as a global ambassador for the initiative.
During the show, William spoke about his childhood ambition to become a policeman and a later aspiration to be a DJ. "Then I went through a phase of wanting to be a DJ, which didn't go very well. I was called DJ Xara, with an X," he revealed. He also shared that Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, eight, are big fans of the BBC's reality show The Celebrity Traitors, saying: "I love it, the family love it. Charlotte and Louis are obsessed with it. It's really good telly."
Republic's Complaint
Republic, which campaigns for the abolition of the monarchy, released a statement questioning whether the BBC had breached its own guidelines. The National reports the group said: "The show appears to have been co-opted for the promotion of the Earthshot Prize, an independent charity with close ties to William. The BBC's own guidelines say the corporation must not endorse or support individual charities except for its own official corporate charities, such as Children in Need."
The statement continued: "In 2013, the BBC reprimanded Norton and his production company after Norton wore a World AIDS Day ribbon on his show. At the time, the BBC said its guidelines meant the corporation 'must remain independent and distanced from government initiatives, campaigners, charities and their agendas, no matter how apparently worthy the cause or how much their message appears to be accepted or uncontroversial'."
Formal Complaint Planned
Express.co.uk has approached the BBC for comment. It has been reported that a BBC complaints report showed 292 complaints were made regarding William's appearance. Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic, said the group would be lodging a formal complaint, stating: "The BBC has an appalling track record when it comes to royal partiality."
