The Prince of Wales playfully suggested he might shave his beard and opt for a moustache after encountering several Army officers sporting the fashionable look.
Prince William made the light-hearted remark during a visit to troops from the Mercian Regiment at their Wiltshire barracks, where he serves as Colonel-in-Chief.
Dressed in a camouflage uniform and the regimental beret, the Prince met soldiers from the 1st Battalion who returned last December from a six-month deployment to Estonia, contributing to Nato forces.
William had previously visited Estonia last March to meet the Mercian troops.
At the UK barracks, he also engaged with female soldiers, discussing challenges they face in the Army, and observed urban warfare training via drone footage. In the officer’s mess at Picton Barracks, Bulford, the future king chatted with officers and their families.
Lieutenant Jack Austin, 23, from south Manchester, who sported a moustache, confirmed he discussed his facial hair with the Prince.
He said: “It started in Estonia, a few of us officers grew moustaches and it snowballed from there.
“I brought it up when I was chatting to the prince and he said ‘maybe I should get rid of the beard and just have the moustache’.”
In 2024 the Army officially allowed soldiers and officers to grow full beards, overturning a long-standing rule which helped modernise the service, improve recruiting, and align it with the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy.
William joked with Maxine Debonnaire, 63, from Gillingham, Kent and her son Lieutenant Harris Debonnaire, 26, who served in Estonia.
Mrs Debonnaire said she teased her son in front of William about how much time they spent together when he returned from his deployment in the Baltic state.
“He was out every night when he came back and sometimes during the day,” she joked.
“I’m very proud of him, very proud. I keep telling everyone my son is an officer in the Army.”
The mother and son also quizzed William about his love of sport, asking if he had been watching his beloved Aston Villa football club and which did he prefer, football or rugby, with the prince answering football.
Lt Debonnaire was also sporting a bushy moustache and said he had been the first among the officers deployed to Estonia to grow one, originally for the Movember charity campaign and “it just grew on me”, he joked.
Revised House aviation safety bill wins NTSB support, but victims' families demand tougher timelines
William and Kate attend enthronement of first female Archbishop of Canterbury
Inside the 82nd Airborne: The US army division set to deploy in the Middle East
One of Lyra McKee murder accused ‘part of shooting party’ and ‘stewarded crowd’
Benefit cheat who claimed she was too ill to leave house caught ziplining in Mexico
Claims of church revival debunked after YouGov withdraws ‘fraudulent’ poll
