The Princess of Wales has scaled the heights to make sure London
drinkers get the perfect pint.
Kate climbed a ladder to stir a vat of ale as she and Prince
William visited areas along the Thames to celebrate the power of
the community.
As they visited some of the breweries making up the celebrated
Bermondsey Beer Mile, the Princess tackled the steps up to the top
of a brewing vessel and used a large wooden pole to give the beer a
good mix up.
It came as William and Kate toured the Mile during a surprise
visit to south London.
Earlier, the couple had stopped off at the world famous Borough
market to see some of the food and drink providers there. The
Princess of Wales turned barista, making a cappuccino during her
time at Change Please, an award-winning social enterprise that
tackles homelessness. It offers training to people experiencing
homelessness and also guides them with advice and support around
finding accommodation, getting a bank account and finding onward
employment.
Kate clearly enjoyed her chance at rustling up a coffee, taking
her time to swirl the milk into the drink before calling her
husband over to try the results.
The Prince and Princess of Wales later joined forces on a visit
to Humble Crumble, another award winning part of Borough Market. It
was started in 2018 by Kim Innes who focused on fruit crumbles and
quickly became so successful that her venture has now expanded to
other markets.
Kate won praise for her skills in decorating the crumbles that
were being made while William stuck to the more mundane task of
balancing the fruit to crumble ratio.
Their time in south London also saw them take to the water as
they toured the RNLI Tower Lifeboat station. They spoke to
volunteers about their lifesaving work before Prince William took
to the wheel of a boat.
The Tower Lifeboat station is the busiest of all the RNLI posts
and is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The surprise visit also saw Kate make a revelation about her
health. During her time with some of the brewers on the Beer Mile,
she spoke about her own relationship with alcohol since her cancer
diagnosis, saying that she found it best to now avoid it.
And while he was happy to pop some hops into a brew, the Prince
of Wales also found his drinking habits under the spotlight. Kate
revealed that the future king is a big fan of cider.
However, Prince William – who has been seen with a pint or two
in his hands on public engagements – also said he believed that
pubs were crucial for local
communities, noting that they were ”so important” and adding
”they are places for people and the community to come
together.”
Publicans have, in recent times, spoken out about the impact of
the end of Covid era tax relief for pubs and the struggle faced by
some over business rates rises.
If William was making a political statement, it came with a
royal staple attached. As is customary on any regal visit to a pub,
the Prince and Princess of Wales did the honours and pulled a pint
each.
