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Prince William‘s beard transformation has the thumbs up from his wife Kate Middleton, which is all the approval he needs, a former royal aide reveals. 2024 saw the royal family deal with some of their most tumultuous journey yet, as two senior royals, King Charles and Kate battled cancer. Standing by two people he loved most in the world as they dealt with potentially life-threatening illnesses left its mark on William, who became stronger, and more capable of dealing with hurdles life may throw at him. The heir apparent emerged from that devastating moment of his life with a physical reminder of the near tragedy, at least in the eyes of royal fans.
The Prince of Wales debuted his bearded look last November, just as his wife made her gradual return to the public eye after her battle with cancer. Although many have speculated the possible hidden “sentimental” meaning behind Prince William’s beards, the royals have failed to address it, letting the guessing game thrive.
What Kate Middleton Thinks About Prince William’s Beards
Months later, a former royal aide opens up about the royal’s bearded look and responds to curious folks questioning his hairy transformation. Appearing in an interview for a special episode of 60 Minutes Australia, former royal aide and communications secretary to William, Jason Knauf said of the Prince’s facial hair,
“I love it. I think it’s great. But I’ve talked to him about it or tried to talk to him about it. He’s like, ‘It’s here. I have a beard. No further conversation.”
After revealing Prince William’s reluctance to discuss his beards, the former royal aide also shared his thoughts on how his wife, Kate Middleton, truly felt about it. Asked if the Princess of Wales was a fan of the facial hair, the former communications secretary divulged,
“If she didn’t like it, it wouldn’t be there. I could tell you that.”
Another royal family member whose opinion on Prince William’s beard would have mattered to him was the late British Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. In his memoir, Spare, William’s brother, Prince Harry, revealed how he had to request special permission from his grandmother, the then-monarch, before keeping his beard for his 2018 wedding to Meghan Markle. The 40-year-old revealed that only after receiving permission from the Queen did he freely rock his stubble on his wedding day.
William Disapproved of Harry Keeping a Beard At His Royal Wedding
Even so, the Prince revealed that his brother, William, who had been denied permission to keep his beard on his own nuptials 7 years prior, kicked against it. Harry admittedly had to explain to his brother, with detailed analysis of royals before him who had set precedence by keeping beards at their own nuptials. Harry claimed his brother still disapproved of him growing his beard for the wedding despite his explanations, insisting “military rules” forbade it. Eventually, the Duke of Sussex had to come clean to his brother, revealing their grandmother had already given him the green light. Harry recalled,
“When I informed him that his opinion didn’t really matter, since I’d already gone to Granny and got the green light, he became livid.”
The beard dispute reportedly resulted in one of the many hurdles the royals went through ahead of the 2018 nuptials. Thankfully, Prince William’s decision to grow a beard nearly seven years later did not face that much resistance. The only royal with a conflicting opinion was his daughter, Princess Charlotte. In a previous interview, William recounted how the 9-year-old did not like his beard the first time he grew it and even broke into a flood of tears. This prompted the Prince to shave it off and regrow it in a style that was more appealing to her. Months later, Prince William still proudly rocks his much cleaner trim, sending a message that his hairy appearance is here to stay.
