Prince William joined King Charles and Queen Camilla to mark the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan tragedy on Wednesday, October 21, and while speaking with members of the public gathered in the Welsh village, the Prince of Wales encountered a very chatty fan.
An avalanche of coal waste swept through Aberfan in 1966, killing 144 people, the large majority of whom were children at the local school. During their visit to Wales, the Prince of Wales, The King and The Queen held a meet-and-greet with members of the public, and one interaction was shared on Instagram by fan account My Royal News.
“When you meet your chatty friend, but your father is waiting for you,” the video said, showing the Prince of Wales speaking to one woman for quite a long time. “You must have the warmest ears here!” he exclaimed, commenting on the fan’s earmuffs.
Prince William talking to a fan
A photo posted by
The woman talks on at length, with William eventually bursting into laughter and saying, “You’re a chatty one, aren’t you?” He tries to end the conversation politely, but as the fan keeps chatting, the Prince of Wales said, “I feel my father’s long gone!” laughing and grabbing her hand warmly as he said, “I have to keep going.”
However, that didn’t work, and the woman kept right on speaking as William said, “Good. I’m glad,” finally saying it was “very nice to see you” as he made his escape.
Royal fans couldn't help but weigh in on the interaction in the comments, like one who wrote, "Prince William always respectful and kind ❤️" and another who said, "He made her day. She will be speaking of this for a long long time."
"Sorry, I think that lady is a bit rude for keep on talking and wouldn’t listen to what William’s trying to say," a third commenter added. "But Prince William is handling it like a pro! So sweet of him ❤️."
Usually, Princess Kate is the one who spends too long speaking to people during royal events, with the royal once admitting that she would get "teased" by other members of the family for taking her time. Prince William will remind her to keep moving, like he did during a recent visit to Scotland, but this time, Kate wasn't there to return the favor.
Although the Princess of Wales didn't join the royal trio in Aberfan, she did make a solo appearance on October 22, visiting The Treehouse hospice operated by one of her longest patronages, East Anglia's Children's Hospices.