Prince William’s message from Brazil is clear | Royal | News

It’s been a busy week in Brazil, with 4am alarms and midnight returns, as I followed the Prince of Wales promoting the fifth year of his Earthshot Prize. Though the days were long, William’s enthusiasm for the environment never once wavered – as he appeared positive, engaged and chatty throughout.

Every day, he was 110% committed to the cause of encouraging everyone, from politicians and business leaders to everyday people, to come together to find solutions to the world’s biggest climate catastrophes. It’s clear the future king has a clear agenda to promote his environmental message and encourage the people and companies that can make a real difference to start making cleaner choices.

William will never risk straying into the political realm, despite what his own personal feelings may be about certain climate-sceptic world leaders and the destruction of the Amazon to build a highway for an environmental conference. But he’ll use speeches, such as the one he gave on Wednesday night at the annual Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony and at COP30 the next day, to shout the message loud and clear.

UN climate summit, he strategically praised as “visionary” a Brazilian-led fund for rainforests – seen as key to the UN Cop30 climate summit but which the British Government has said it will not invest in.

The UK had been considering support for the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, but will not commit public money as Rachel Reeves grapples with balancing the books ahead of the Budget this month. William’s message is simple: What we as a nation and planet are doing isn’t enough – and if we want our children, our grandchildren and future generations to live in a safe, clean planet with thriving ecosystems, action needs to take place.

One thing William excels at is tapping into younger audiences. He embraces young people with open arms and appeals to them in a way that other royals have struggled to do.

The prince’s approach to selfies, hugs and social media makes him appear relatable and down to Earth. And pictures of him leaping through the air on a beach volleyball pitch helps to soften the monarchy’s image, especially after a tumultuous few weeks.

William is breaking down barriers and using his popular appeal to portray an important vision for the future, providing hope that it’s not too late – we just need to come together and get the ball rolling faster than its current rate.

Are we really surprised that the Duke of Sussex embarked on a two-day tour to Toronto during the most important week of his brother’s calendar? I’m not sure anyone is fooled by the so-called accidental diary clash and his team’s insistence that his trip has been over a year in the planning. And royal sources certainly aren’t either, with one saying exasperatedly: “It’s not as if it’s the first time.”

Team Sussex insisted the royal household had been informed – but it appears they referred the trip to Buckingham Palace (the office of the King and Queen) and not Kensington Palace – who looks after William.

The prince’s team were missing from that so-called “peace summit” in the summer, which saw the King’s aides sit down with Harry’s team in order to prevent any schedule conflicts.

Clearly then, his team felt no need to forewarn William that he was going to be marking ‘Remembrancetide’ (an apparent holiday none of us have ever heard of) in Canada.

But if the future king’s nose was put out of joint there was no hint of that in Brazil and he did the smart thing by letting his actions do the talking. And who can really overshadow a prince playing volleyball on the beach? No chance.

Well, well, well… Meghan Markle is returning to acting after all. In a star-studded cast alongside Emily in Paris star Lily Collins (my column’s namesake) Henry Golding and Brie Larson the Duchess of Sussex has landed a role in the film Close Personal Friends.

Apparently she’s been “swamped with offers” to return to Hollywood despite quitting the profession eight years earlier and earning a divisive reputation.

Bizarrely, Meghan is playing… herself in a film about two couples, one famous, one not. You can’t make it up.

After a humiliating and truly devastating few weeks for Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, he’s finally been given some good news.

Having been stripped of his royal titles, honours and military rank, the King has said that no action will be taken against his Falklands War campaign medal.

Andrew, who served in the Royal Navy for 22years, fought in the 1982 conflict and was awarded the South Atlantic Medal and an additional rosette for his actions.

And his brother has agreed that he can retain the military honour. Some won’t be happy with the decision, but I think it’s the right one.

It’s not something that was a birthright or given to him because of his status; he earned it through active service.

Andrew wasn’t involved in a drill or merely sitting on the sidelines; he acted as a decoy for Argentinian missiles. Whatever your views on him, I’m not sure anyone who is awarded something for bravery on the battlefield should have such an honour taken away.

Titles, rank and honours – yes, but taking away a military medal just doesn’t feel right.

The Royal Family are back to business as usual this week, after the Prince of Wales was able to put the Firm back on track after weeks of scandal involving his disgraced uncle.

As I arrived in Brazil last week, it was unclear whether Andrew would overshadow William’s entire trip – or if the King’s stripping of his brother’s titles was enough to stem the tide.

While Andrew isn’t going away, especially after he’s been summoned to appear before the US Congress over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, it’s no longer dominating the royal agenda.

William was able to showcase what the Royal Family are really about, highlighting key issues and soft diplomacy. This week will be dominated by engagements by senior royals across the country, and with an important trip by Princess Anne to Singapore.