Members of the royal family are accustomed to formal titles, but the Prince of Wales was affectionately crowned 'bro' during a visit to south-east London yesterday. Prince William, 43, undertook an engagement to highlight how British pubs are vital to the country's culture at the Prince of Peckham, where he gamely pulled a pint and learned about landlord Clement Ogbonnaya's initiative to combat loneliness.
As he was leaving the pub in his chauffeur-driven car, a well-wisher shouted 'I love you bro' and rushed up to the future King for a handshake. William responded with 'nice to see you' and waved goodbye amid a chorus of 'love you' and 'I can't believe it!', as captured in a video posted on X/Twitter. The footage showed William's smiling bodyguard politely asking the crowd to step back as the heir to the throne was driven away.
While the young men were in awe of William, he was charmed by a young schoolgirl who sweetly hugged the father-of-three during the surprise visit. Documenting the moment on TikTok, the girl's mother shared footage of the pair chatting happily and captioned it: 'Prince William met MY daughter and was smitten with her.'
X users later declared Prince William was at his charismatic best during the solo engagement. One person wrote: 'Big smiles, handshakes and real connection, such simple gestures that meant so much to everyone there.' Another added: 'Moments like this show how much simple kindness and visibility matter - lovely to see a child light up meeting Prince William in such an everyday setting. Pure, wholesome human connection.' 'It was pure joy to see them so happy about Prince William,' a third said.
This follows the Princess of Wales making a rare public declaration of 'love' for her husband of 15 years during a reception for Cancer Research UK at St James's Palace on Tuesday. Catherine, 44, joined King Charles, 77, and Queen Camilla, 78, at the event to personally thank those leading the nation's battle against the disease. She was speaking to former Boyzone star Ronan Keating, who lost his mother to cancer, and his wife, when they asked after William, who skipped the event. 'Please say hi to William,' the 49-year-old Irish singer told Catherine. Storm, 44, added the future King is 'such a gent' before Ronan declared: 'We love him'. Catherine, who wore a £1,600 red midi dress with white hearts from Rodarte, then made the pair laugh when she replied: 'So do I.'
During a more serious conversation with Sebastian Bowen, the widower of 'bowel babe' Dame Deborah James, Catherine seemingly hinted at her husband's quiet support after she was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer in early 2024. Deborah, who died after a multi-year battle with incurable bowel cancer, was honoured by Prince William for her incredible fundraising and campaigning weeks before she passed away on June 28, 2022. When Sebastian appeared to thank William for a sympathetic conversation that he apparently had with the couple's two children, the princess replied: 'He's good like that.'
The Prince made the surprise south-east London drop-in as part of a visit to understand more how British pubs contribute to community. After arriving at the community pub, the heir to the throne spent time posing for selfies with patrons, local residents and well-wishers before heading inside to get behind the bar. Dressed in a navy blue linen suit with a light blue shirt, the royal even tried his hand behind the bar, looking a little nervous as he pulled a pint.
The 43-year-old dropped by to learn more about The Prince of Peckham's 'Chatty Patty' initiative, which was set up by landlord Clement Ogbonnaya in 2017 to help combat loneliness. The weekly sessions see attendees enjoying free cups of tea and a chat, with similar social events also taking place in the historic SE15 boozer, including poetry nights and yoga sessions. Mr Ogbonnaya was honoured by the Palace in the New Year's Honours List for his work on fighting isolation with the inclusive pub events.
The community-led venue was founded as an inclusive ‘pub for all’ and is now regarded as a hub for strengthening local connection. William pulled a very passable pint at the regal-themed pub, as he spoke of the importance of locals in bringing people together. He also threw his support behind campaigns to save Britain’s pubs, which are slowly dying out in many communities across the country, saying we need to ‘protect’ them.
William said: ‘I love pubs. I want to do as much as I can to support pubs because I love the community. We need to protect our pubs.’ The future king added that Britain’s public houses act as ‘the glue and fabric’ in a community, adding: ‘It’s the people – the team – around a pub that make it.’ Speaking about Mr Ogbonnaya, the Prince said: ‘It’s a family business which is good, because that makes the pub.’ He told the group that he 'grew up in pubs' and has previously described them as ‘crucial’ for human contact.
During the visit, he pulled a pint of Red Stripe with Mr Ogbonnaya, describing his own efforts as ‘really good’ and receiving a round of applause. He joked Mr Ogbonnaya was 'just as bad as me' and the pair laughed and bumped shoulders after their efforts. Prince William also tried the jerk chicken with plantain, which he said 'blew my mind'. ‘I’m hoping they’ll Deliveroo this jerk chicken to Windsor,’ he quipped.
