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Prince & Princess of Wales

William shares a pint with emergency responders over Scottish Cup Final

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge

The Duke of Cambridge shared a pint with emergency responders over the weekend as they watched the Scottish Cup Final at an Edinburgh rooftop bar.

William, who’d invited emergency responders and their families and friends, gathered the group so that they could chat about their experiences over the past year and to thank them for “their dedication and commitment in the most challenging of circumstances,” according to Kensington Palace.

Over pints at the Cold Town House in Grassmarket, William chatted with the responders about their mental health and their families. He asked how they’d kept in touch with their families during the lockdown and revealed that when he spoke with his own family: “I found it so good to catch up, but then you haven’t anything to catch up on because no one had done anything.”

He added after one guest revealed that they hadn’t seen their in-laws in a year: “Some people are quite happy they haven’t seen their in-laws for a year.” He was quick to point out that he’s not one of those people, adding: “I love my in-laws,” the Middletons.

The Duke of Cambridge and his guests watched as St Johnstone defeated Hib in a 1-0 victory, and the Kensington Royal Twitter account shared a tweet, writing: “Football is powerful in so many ways. Not only in its ability to bring people together like yesterday’s and today’s events but also how it uses its platform to continue the conversation on mental health.

“Many of the emergency responders today were open about the mental health challenges they’ve experienced during the pandemic and how they coped throughout.

“We must ensure that all emergency responders receive the mental health support they need.”

Speaking afterwards to the Herald Scotland, Kristy Walker recalled the conversation she’d held with William before the match began.

“He seems to care a lot about mental health generally and the importance of talking and supporting each other generally,” she said. She and her sister were talking to the Duke about their father, who’d committed suicide in 2018.

“We’ve been affected by suicide and so we had a good chat about mental health and he was clearly passionate about it. We have both had traumatic bereavement, as he lost his mum and me and my sister have lost our dad. We are all trauma survivors and so is he.”

Another guest told the LBC—Leading Britain’s Conversation—that “[William] seems to care quite a lot about mental health, genuinely…how to get people to talk and support each other, so it was nice to see him genuinely interested.”

Kensington Palace added: “The Duke of Cambridge is committed to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of the emergency services community and tackling the stigma that can act as a barrier for individuals seeking support. He witnessed first-hand the challenges that emergency responders face on a daily basis while working as both an Air Ambulance and RAF Search and Rescue pilot.”

Prince William’s visit to Scotland continues through to 27 May, with Kate joining him on 24 May. Royal Central will provide full coverage of their royal visit.

About author

Jess Ilse is the Assistant Editor at Royal Central. She specialises in the British, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Royal Families and has been following royalty since Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Jess has provided commentary for media outlets in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Jess works in communications and her debut novel THE MAJESTIC SISTERS will publish in Fall 2024.