A proud Prince William was overheard asking young people being awarded their Duke of Edinburgh medals this afternoon ‘Did you know he was my grandfather?’
The Duke, 38, and Duchess of Cambridge, 39, have been touring the north east of England today, first paying a visit to Manor Farm near County Durham before spending time with youngsters who are being helped by the Royal Wedding Charitable Gift fund set up following their wedding in 2010.
William made the touching reference to his late grandfather Prince Philip as he chatted to two young people who had recently completed their Duke of Edinburgh Award.
Scroll down for video
Prince William, 38, pictured with the Duchess of Cambridge, 39, at the Cheesy Waffles Project, a charity for children, young people and adults with additional needs across County Durham. The Duke was heard asking youngsters: ‘Do you know he was my grandfather?
The prince explained to Evan Jones, 18, and Lee Middleton, 23, who’d earned their gold awards that his grandfather had ‘died a few weeks ago’ but said the late royal would be ‘so pleased that you got your awards’
William heard how Evan Jones, 18, and Lee Middleton, 23, had earned their gold awards and took the opportunity to chat about Prince Philip, who helped found the Duke of Edinburgh scheme in 1956.
The prince was heard asking: ‘Do you know he was my grandfather?’
He then added: ‘Sadly he died a few weeks ago. He would have been so pleased that you got your awards.’
The lighthearted afternoon saw the duke and duchess showing off their golfing skills on the grass outside the project, with Kate laughing heartily after she connected with the ball.
Earlier today, Prince William Kate travelled up to Darlington to visit Manor Farm where they were offered a tour and met with Clare Wise and Stewart Chapman
The royal couple watched on as one young man gave putting a go during their visit to the Belmont Community Centre earlier this afternoon
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge meet young people during a visit to the Cheesy Waffles Project at the Belmont Community Centre in Durham
The royals travelled up to Darlington this morning to visit Manor Farm before heading to the Cheesy Waffles Project, a charity supporting young people with learning difficulties, this afternoon.
The project has benefited from the couple’s Royal Wedding Charitable Gift fund, which totalled more than £1 million when they married almost exactly a decade ago.
Donations were made by well-wishers in lieu of gifts and £33,000 went to The Key, which works with organisations across the north east of England to develop skills in young people.
Tom Crosby, David Hamilton, Sam Peaden and Alumbeni Makwaela-Wali told the couple how they had organised Christmas trees, an inflatable snowman and a snow machine for a socially-distanced community elf trail, afternoon tea deliveries for elderly people nearby and an online bingo session.
The couple visited the Cheesy Waffles Project, which supports children, young people and adults with additional needs aged 7 to 35 from across County Durham, where the duo showed off their golfing skills
Referring to the couple’s efforts at a Cardiff care home last year, William joked: ‘We did online bingo and we weren’t very good at it.
‘We were bingo callers and we got told by an elderly lady some very rude words – she said we needed to try a bit harder.’
CWP’s manager Erika Denholm said some activities usually enjoyed by members such as trips away and cookery sessions had been halted by the pandemic, but might resume from next month.
William said: ‘It’s that hope, that light at the end of the tunnel – everybody wants something to look forward to now.’
Earlier in the day, the couple were given a tour of Manor Farm, a fifth-generation family-run mixed cattle, sheep and arable farm near Darlington, and were seen visiting the cattle, calving and lambing sheds with owners Clare Wise and Stewart Chapman.
Farmers Clare and Stewart spoke to Kate and William about their particular focus on protecting the health and welfare of their livestock, as well as some of the tools used at the farm including grass monitoring, land rotation and feed sampling to improve productivity and ensure that they are able to give back to the environment and increase their sustainability.
The royals then joined a discussion with local farmers who are supported by The National Farmers Union about their experiences of the last year, including the mental health impact of COVID-19 for farmers and the challenges of balancing home-schooling with farm work.