William, Prince of Wales, recalled the hilarious blunder with a 22-year-old man while visiting the Sweet Surprise cafe in Ilminster, Somerset, earlier this month.
The man who mistook William, Prince of Wales, for singing legend Prince has penned a letter to the royal, apologising for the blunder.
On October 23’s episode of BBC’s The Graham Norton Show, the 44-year-old heir to the throne recalled the funny moment with 22-year-old Sebastian Smith – not named during the broadcast – while visiting the Sweet Surprise cafe in Ilminster, Somerset, South West England, earlier this month.
William said: “I went to a place in Somerset and was looking around some of the local communities there, and one lovely gentleman looked up at me from his seat, and said, ‘When are you going to sing?’
“I looked at him – and I’ve had many requests over many years for all ranging parts of society – and I said, ‘I’m sorry, what do you mean?’
“And he goes, ‘When are you going to sing your performance?’
“And the lady behind tapped his arm, ‘No, no, he’s not that Prince.’
“It turned out he wanted me to sing Purple Rain, which I don’t know the lyrics for.”
Sebastian’s family have now revealed he wrote a letter to Prince William, apologising for the awkward blunder at the Sweet Surprise cafe, which helps adults with learning difficulties.
His mum Claire told The Sun: “To be honest, I don’t think Sebastian had any idea who Prince William was – but he’s a massive fan of Prince the singer and can list all his songs and knows all the lyrics.
“Considering his learning difficulties, it is amazing.
“So when Prince William arrived at Sweet Surprise, Sebastian assumed it was Prince the singer!”
Sebastian has Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome.
It is an “extremely rare genetic condition”, often but not always “characterised by typical facial features, microcephaly (small head circumference), broad thumbs and first toes, intellectual disability, and postnatal growth delay”, per the RTS Support Group.
Claire added: “We’ve helped Sebastian write a letter to Prince William.
“In it, he thanks William for visiting and has apologised for mistaking him for Prince.
“We hope he sees it.”
Elsewhere on the October 23 episode of The Graham Norton Show, the Prince of Wales revealed the surprising jobs he fantasised about as a child.
He shared: “I did want to be a policeman when I was younger, I thought I could make a good one.”
Surprisingly, William once “went through a phase of wanting to be a DJ”, but after trying his hand at mixing tracks, he admitted he “wasn’t very good” at it.
William joined actress Cate Blanchett, 57, and Hannah Waddingham, 52, and conservationist Robert Irwin, 22, on the sofa to talk about next month’s Earthshot Prize, which all the guests are involved with.
The annual global environment award, which is being held in Mumbai, India, was founded by His Royal Highness in 2020, and it recognises and funds solutions to repair and protect the planet.
Man who mistook Prince William for singer Prince pens apology letter to royal
