Prince William to Star in New Documentary

Prince William will star in a new two-part docuseries following his homewards initiative, Homewards, which will air in Britain this autumn.

At Prince William: We Can End HomelessnessThe palace will provide a behind-the-scenes insight into its work with the Homewards initiative, which launches in June 2023 with the aim of making homelessness a “rare, brief and unrepeatable” problem in modern society.

This is not the first time the prince has made a documentary. In 2010, William traveled to Botswana to promote Tusk’s charity work, which celebrated its 20th anniversary with a documentary. Prince William of Africa. The prince was also shadowed and gave an interview to the makers of the 2020 documentary Prince William: A Planet For Us All.

The new show will follow the prince over two one-hour episodes as he launches the Homewards initiative in six hub areas across Britain. It will also bring attention to the homeless and the problems they face.

This initiative was developed by William’s Royal Foundation as a program to provide six initial hub sites with a five-year commitment to provide tools, expertise, funding, and space to support homeless members of the community. The aim is that this model can be replicated in the UK and around the world.

Although William has previously said that he may be “one of the most unlikely advocates” to support the homeless, given his privileged background, he has linked his lifelong devotion to social issues to his mother, Princess Diana. .

Diana was a vocal supporter of homelessness initiatives throughout her life, becoming patron of charities supporting Britain’s most vulnerable people. One of them is the Centrepoint charity in London which provides support and shelter to people who do not have a safe place to stay.

In 2005, William took over the royal patronage of the charity which had been vacant since Diana died aged 36 in 1997. It was the first official patronage William received as a working royal.

William’s new documentary has been commissioned by Britain’s ITV network and directed by BAFTA award-winning Director Leo Burley.

In a press release announcing the event, Burley said it would see “incredibly moving” stories from people who are currently homeless in the UK.

“Over the past year we have spent time following Prince William and The Royal Foundation in the first year of the Homewards programme,” he said.

“We’ve heard some incredibly moving stories from people across the country facing homelessness. From street homelessness in Newport, to families living in temporary accommodation in Sheffield, and youth homelessness in Aberdeen, the documentary paints a picture of homelessness across the UK today this, and for the homeless.working with many people who never expected to experience life without a place to call home.

“Everyone who has filmed it has welcomed the spotlight that Prince William and Homewards have put on Britain’s homelessness crisis.”

Hinting at why William may have agreed to take part in the event, the CEO of the Royal Foundation, Amanda Berry OBE, said the organization knew that “television has the power to change hearts and minds.”

“We know that television has the power to change hearts and minds. Homelessness can seem difficult to prevent but by showing the reality of people’s experiences and those who come together to support us, we can inspire them to act,” he said.

“This two-part documentary will help raise important awareness and demonstrate that, working together, we can end homelessness.”

There is no official air date for the show, although a “fall” time frame is given.

William is not the only royal to recognize the social good that television programming can achieve.

The royal brother, Prince Harry, and his sister, Meghan Markle, set up their own production company to make documentaries and media projects when they separate from the monarchy in 2020.

So far, Archewell Productions has released three documentaries: Harry & Meghan, Live for Leadand Heart of Invictus.

The duke and duchess have announced two other documentary projects: one focused on the international sport of polo and the other an event curated by Meghan, which will focus on the love of entertainment.

James Crawford-Smith is NewsweekRoyal correspondent, based in London. You can find people on X, formerly Twitter, on @jrcrawfordsmith and read the story in NewsweekThe Royals Facebook page.

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