The president of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), Prince William carried out his duty of attending the 77th ceremony of the annual awards celebrating the arts. The star-studded event at the Royal Festival Hall in London had the likes of Christopher Nolan, Ayo Edebiri, and Cate Blanchett share the space with the Duke of Cornwall even as he arrived at the venue without the Duchess, Kate Middleton, and with a load of additional duties.

Laying out his royal courtesy at the forefront, the working royal formally apologized at the ceremony for his wife’s absence.

Prince William marks his first BAFTA appearance without Kate Middleton

Ever since his assuming the title of president at BAFTA in 2010 and his marriage to Kate Middleton in 2011, Prince William attended all iterations of the annual ceremony as a couple. However, the 2024 and 77th editions of the awards marked a departure as the Duchess had to resort to complete rest after her recently concluded abdominal surgery. Talking to Elaine Bedell, the Duke expressed his apology with “I’m sorry Catherine’s not here”.

However, he did append his wife’s fondness for the event with “She does love the BAFTAs”. The event had the Prince of Wales arrive at the venue in a black tuxedo and spend a fair share of time interacting with the fans and general attendees outside. During the proceedings, he interacted with the guests while also enjoying a performance fumble by comedian, Nick Mohammed. 

During the interaction, the senior royal also opened up on his views of this year’s nominees as well as his admiration for the night’s winning director.

Prince William watched Oppenheimer but missed out on Barbie

Christopher Nolan won his first-ever BAFTA for Best Director for Oppenheimer, which dominated the night with a total of seven wins across several categories. Continuing his interaction at the event, Prince William revealed that he stood as a “big fan of Christopher Nolan” and also that he “loved Oppenheimer”. However, he also stated the reason for missing out on watching its twin summer release, Barbie.

“I’ve had a lot on my mind,” stated the Prince, hinting at his share of additional duties since King Charles’ cancer diagnosis. The toll caused him to lose out on watching many of this year’s BAFTA nominees, including Barbie, which went empty-handed. Acknowledging that he watched “the fewest I’ve ever done before,” Prince William, however, expressed that he would soon catch up.

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