Prince William teams up with Blue Peter to launch Earthshot competition for kids – and he’s had a shave!

Prince William has sent a message to budding young environmentalists by launching a new Earthshot competition for children. For a change, he sported a clean-shaven head.

The 42-year-old Prince of Wales joined the long-running BBC children’s programme Blue Peter to announce the competition, aimed at inspiring young people to focus on solutions for Climate change.

But after wowing royal fans with his designer stubble during his first royal appearance after the summer, when he visited an exhibition about the homeless, the royal father of three was left without any facial hair.

Fans have been going crazy over Williams’ neat, short beard in recent weeks after he sent the internet into a frenzy when he appeared in a clip congratulating Team GB on their Olympic victory.

Standing next to the Princess of Wales in a clip filmed at home, William showed off a “summer holiday” beard that has left many royal fans raving.

William appears to have been experimenting with a variety of looks over the past few months, switching between clean-shaven and designer stubble in several appearances.

Although it is unclear when the Blue Peter clip was filmed, it is likely that William took part in promoting the competition before yesterday.

Speaking to budding environmental activists, the father of three looked classic in a blue ensemble featuring a navy jacket and a light-colored open shirt.

In the new clip, posted to the BBC’s social media channels, William revealed details of the new competition for children, which he hopes will inspire the next generation to come up with sustainable solutions for the planet.

He said: ‘I founded the Earthshot Prize to find solutions to the world’s biggest environmental problems. We want to find the next generation of young inventors who can make a difference.’

Entries for Earthshot open today at 5pm to UK residents aged 5-15. Entries close on 28th October.

The competition invites children to use their imagination to come up with solutions to help the planet. There are prizes to be won in five different categories.

Prizes can be won in the following categories: Improve our climate, protect and restore nature, clean our air, revive our oceans and build a world without waste.

The winners of the competition will receive a prize and the chance to attend a VIP film experience with Blue Peter.

The lucky winners will also receive a copy of the Earthshot book ‘A Handbook for Dreamers and Thinkers, Solutions to Repair our Planet’ and an exclusive orange winner’s badge.

To recognize their achievements, Earthshot winners gets the chance to be recognized by the prince himself.

Four years ago, William launched the competition for adults with the aim of finding solutions to the climate crisis.

Speaking at last year’s Earthshot Prize ceremony, William said we are in a “crucial decade” in which we must try to get the planet on a “healthier” path to tackling the climate crisis.

Since 2021, the awards programme has awarded £15 million in prize money and raised £50 million in further support for 45 winners and finalists.

Yesterday, the prince devoted his first post-summer engagement to one of his most cherished causes when he visited the Homelessness: Reframed exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery in Chelsea, London.

The heir to the throne was also reunited with his friend Dave Martin, a Big Issue seller he has taken under his wing.

Dave first became homeless in 2011 after moving to London. After an extraordinary journey, he now exchanges Christmas cards with the future king. The two have since become good friends.

The two showed the depth of their bond as the Prince shook Dave’s hand and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder.

“Dave, it’s good to see you again. How are you?” William said enthusiastically.

“Do I recognize this? Is this you?” he said, speaking of a work he contributed featuring abstract geometric shapes representing aspects of his life, such as paths, a roof over his head and windows to see the light.

Mr. Martin said proudly of William, “He recognized my work straight away.”

Then William said to him, ‘If I don’t see you soon, take good care of yourself.’

In June 2022, William quietly joined Dave to sell The Big Issue on the streets of central London.

And last July, he said he was more convinced than ever that homelessness can be eradicated for good.

Homelessness: Reframed aims to bring to life the scale and complexity of homelessness and help audiences connect with and better understand the stories of people who have experienced this issue.

This is one of the key aims of the Homewards programme, launched in June 2023 by The Prince and the Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales. It aims to change the narrative and tackle negative perceptions and stereotypes around homelessness, and to eradicate homelessness in six key areas across the UK.

William spoke about his passion to change public perceptions about homelessness, and was so engrossed in his work that his half-hour visit to Homelessness: Reframed ran almost an hour over.

When told that attendance had far exceeded expectations – instead of the expected 5,000, more than 25,000 people walked through the doors of the six-week show in just 23 days – he said: ‘I’m really, really happy, so happy.’

Fans were left in panic when it emerged that William had shaved off his stubble to return to work, after the clean-shaven prince was spotted attending a church service at Crathie Kirk, near Balmoral.

But William is clearly a fan of the new look and had let his hair grow again for his return to engagements on Thursday, after spending the summer with Princess Kate and their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

William recently appeared in a promotional video for Blue Peter for the prestigious Earshot competition, in which he showed off his usual slicked-back hairdo. However, it is likely that the video was filmed before the prince decided to grow his famous stubble back.