Wannabe DJ, Nolan Fan: Prince William Takes the Graham Norton Sofa in a Royal First

Prince William made a surprise appearance on BBC One’s The Graham Norton Show on Friday, October 23, walking onto the red sofa for a special Earthshot Prize edition of the programme that was reported as a royal first for the chat show. Kensington Palace announced the appearance on Friday morning, and the pre-recorded episode aired that night at 10:40pm, People and Reuters reported. The Independent reported that the studio audience gasped when the Prince of Wales walked on.

William joined three guests who are all involved with the Earthshot Prize: Cate Blanchett, a member of the Earthshot Prize Council; Hannah Waddingham, who hosted the 2023 Earthshot awards; and Robert Irwin, the prize’s global ambassador. The singer-songwriter Jorja Smith was the musical guest, People reported. A post on the Prince and Princess of Wales’s Instagram account, quoted by People, said: “Joining the iconic red sofa for a very special @earthshotprize edition of the @thegrahamnortonshowofficial. Watch tonight on BBC One at 10:40pm.”

Asked how the prize began, William described the frustration that produced it. “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,” he said, as People reported. “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.” He added, in Reuters’ account: “There are some amazing people out there doing things to protect the world.” William founded the Earthshot Prize in 2020; it awards five winners £1 million each to fund environmental ideas, Reuters reported, and this year’s ceremony takes place in Mumbai on November 17, according to People.

Norton also asked how the prince relaxes. William said that he and his family together enjoy the reality show The Celebrity Traitors, Reuters reported; the Daily Mail’s reporting of the episode said he told Norton that “Charlotte and Louis are obsessed with it.” For himself, he said, he turns to music and films, Reuters reported.

His film taste ran to one director in particular. “I’m a big fan of everything Christopher Nolan does. His films are fantastic — The Dark Knight series is psychologically dark and deep and I absolutely love that,” William said, according to Reuters. “He takes concepts that are completely out there and makes them incredibly entertaining.”

Asked what he might have done had he not been heir to the throne, William named two abandoned ambitions. “I did want to be a policeman when I was younger; I thought I could make a good one,” he said, as People reported. “And then I went through a phase of wanting to be a DJ,” he added, before admitting, “I wasn’t very good.” In the event, his working life before full-time royal duties was spent flying: he served as an RAF search and rescue pilot and then as an air ambulance helicopter pilot, People noted.

Reuters noted that the appearance fits a recent pattern: the heir to the throne, 44, has in recent years regularly appeared in less formal settings in a bid to connect with younger audiences, including BBC Radio 1, one of the UK’s biggest stations for under-30s, and sports podcasts. Friday’s sofa was the latest of those platforms — and, as Radio Times and People both reported, the first time a member of the royal family has taken a seat on Norton’s show.

Sources: Reuters; People; Radio Times; The Independent; Daily Mail.