Prince William has gotten more candid than ever before in a special podcast appearance, where he shared insights into family life with his kids, his memories of Princess Diana and more.
The future king opened up on the Apple Fitness+ Time to Walk series, which encourages people to get outside for a walk to improve mental health and wellness.
It’s a cause close to William’s heart, and he wore his heart on his sleeve for the special episode where he revealed his children’s surprising music taste.
The future king revealed a sweet moment between his two youngest children, Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte.
(Image: Getty)“What I’ve been amazed by is how much my children already have inherited my family’s love of music,” William revealed of his and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge’s three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
“Most mornings there’s a massive fight between Charlotte and George as to what song is played. And I have to, now, basically prioritise that one day someone does this one, and another day it’s someone else’s turn. So, George gets his go, then Charlotte gets her go. Such is the clamour for the music.
“One of the songs that the children are loving at the moment is Shakira, Waka Waka. Charlotte, particularly, is running around the kitchen in her dresses and ballet stuff and everything. She goes completely crazy with Louis following her around trying to do the same thing.”
William also shared some personal insights about his own mother, Princess Diana, noting that one of her favourite songs was Tina Turner’s The Best, which she would play in the car as she drove William and Prince Harry to school as children.
“Sitting in the backseat, singing away, it felt like a real family moment,” the 39-year-old said.
“And my mother, she’d be driving along, singing at the top of her voice. And we’d even get the policeman in the car, he’d be occasionally singing along, as well.”
William shared a number of sweet insights throughout the episode, which followed him as he took a stroll through the Queen’s 20,000-acre Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.
It’s one of the royal family’s favourite residences and they retreat there every year for Christmas, appearing at a local church for Christmas Day mass.
William recalled racing after his late grandfather, Prince Philip, on the family’s walk to church when he was a child, saying that he and Harry were often “at the back with little legs trying to keep up.”
The Sandringham Estate is also close to where William and Catherine lived in the early years of their marriage, while he was working as a pilot with the East Anglian Air Ambulance.
Recalling his time in the role, William was honest about how it affected his mental health, especially when he was called to the scene of heartbreaking accidents.
The prince confessed that one car accident involving a little boy, who was around Prince George’s age, had a lasting impact on him.
Prince William made a special appearance on the podcast.
(Image: Twitter/ @KensingtonRoyal)“Something had changed… [there was] a real tension inside of me,” William said.
“My personal life and everything was absolutely fine. I was happy at home and happy at work, but I kept looking at myself, going, ‘Why am I feeling like this? Why do I feel so sad?’
“And I started to realise that, actually, you’re taking home people’s trauma, people’s sadness, and it’s affecting you.”
The royal confessed that he was “lucky” enough to have someone to talk to who also worked for the Air Ambulance service, who helped him work through the mental affects of the job.
In 2017, William left the service to devote his time to his royal duties, but has maintained a strong relationship with frontline workers and puts a great deal of work into mental health efforts to support them.
His appearance on the podcast is just one of the ways he continues to push a positive message around mental health, sharing his own experiences to normalise getting help.
Taking to the Kensington Royal Twitter account before the episode was released, William wrote: “In the hope of inspiring a few other people to get active and take some extra time for their own mental health – I wanted to share a few of my stories and favourite songs with you in an episode of Time to Walk.
“I’ll explain how I learned to prioritise my own mental health, an important life lesson that taught me to take myself less seriously, & a vital story about how a friend helped me learn to be a better listener. W”
