Grandson to the HRH The Queen and Duke of Cambridge, Prince William is the oldest son of Prince Charles and second in line to the throne. In 2011, he married Catherine Middleton in Westminster Abbey and has since had a son and daughter, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. Prince William has travelled the world throughout his career alongside qualifying as a pilot with the Royal Air Force in Cranwell. He has since trained in flying helicopters too while serving in the British Armed Forces until 2013. Since his service to the forces, Prince William has undertaken his duties as the Counsellor of State, travelling the world on official trips to visit disaster zones, helping humanitarian causes and assisting in improving education and communities in places of Africa.
The Prince has perhaps followed in the footsteps of his late mother, Lady Diana – doing all that he can to help charities, including asking guests to his wedding to donate money to charity, instead of receiving wedding presents. He is dedicated to raising awareness for important causes and has never feared to get his hands dirty, getting involved and physically being present to help do the job.
Although Prince William is extremely busy with his family and his work, he also, like everyone, has hobbies to fulfil his interests. So, what does Prince William like to do when he isn’t parenting, travelling and working?
A Gifted Sportsman
Prince William has been an avid sportsman all his life and is the President of England’s Football Association. He supports Aston Villa Football Club, and is also the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union. Back in 2006, he also took part in a run for Sports Relief. Prince William also became a much-respected patron of the English Schools’ Swimming Association, backing for school swimming to be more accessible for primary school aged children. He felt this was important as he said that “half of 7 to 11-year-olds in England, some 1.1 million children, cannot swim the length of a standard pool.” In his childhood, Prince William was an avid swimmer, also taking part in several sports including rowing, horse riding, shooting, hockey, tennis and skiing. The Prince is often seen on skiing holidays with the Duchess of Cambridge, enjoying hobbies and spending some much-needed family time together.
The Prince Loves Bingo
It is reported that Prince William loved joining friends to head to the bingo hall near Sandhurst when he was training. Apparently, William signed up to be a member and paid for a book of tickets but unfortunately didn’t win anything. But although we haven’t had any reports of him seen in bingo halls as of lately, we can’t be sure he doesn’t take some time to play online. After all, the popularity of bingo has been soaring online in the last few years, as evidenced by the sheer number of new websites, as well as the fact that it has started appealing to millennials. The traditional game was introduced to the UK in the 1960s.
Film Fanatic
Prince William seems to also be a bit of a cinephile. He has been spotted in cinemas watching Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two, Bridesmaids and The Avengers. Prince William has said in interviews that his favourite film is Bridesmaids. He and Catherine are also huge fans of the TV series Downton Abbey and the Inbetweeners.
Mental Health Awareness
In recent months, Prince William and Prince Harry spoke openly to the world promoting Mental Health Awareness. The loss of their beloved mother had a huge effect on their lives at such a young age and Harry in particular suffered from mental health issues. Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge have attended many events marking World Mental Health Day, meeting charities and taking part in anti-bullying workshops. Prince Harry and the Duke of Cambridge filmed a TV documentary speaking out about their mother’s death. They recounted in detail their reaction to the terrible news, wanting to share their accounts and protect Diana’s memory. Prince William said that “part of the reason why Harry and I want to do this is because we feel we owe it to her.”
Prince William has taken on his mother’s approach to life, doing the best he can to help humanitarian causes, support sportsmanship and raise awareness for important causes. However, he is a family man and there is no doubt that much of his relaxing is spent having precious time with his wife and their children.
