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Prince Louis, the youngest son of Prince William and Kate Middleton, could repeat his "star of the show" performance during last year's Platinum Jubilee at the May 6 coronation of his grandfather, King Charles III. This is according to a new episode of Newsweek's The Royal Report podcast.
Louis, 4, won the hearts of royal fans around the world in 2022 who were eager to see Britain's royals participating in the Platinum Jubilee celebrations for Queen Elizabeth II.
The prince pulled a series of cheeky and memorable faces on the Buckingham Palace balcony in London during the Trooping the Color parade. Louis was photographed chatting happily to his great-grandmother, the late queen, during the event.
Later at the special jubilee pageant planned to close the weekend-long celebrations, Louis was again center of attention. He appeared to become restless during the three-hour-long proceedings. The little prince was photographed covering his mother's mouth with his hand at one point and moving from lap to lap of his family members, sparking a parenting debate on social media.
Louis will turn 5 on April 23, just two weeks before his grandfather, Charles, is due to be crowned in an elaborate Westminster Abbey ceremony in London. Though it has been announced that his older brother, Prince George, will play a prominent role in the coronation, it is likely Louis will be considered too young to attend the lengthy event itself.
If this is the case, he may still be included in the royal-family balcony appearance after the ceremony. This is what the 3-year-old Princess Anne did for her mother Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953.
Given the chance of another balcony appearance, it is possible that the young royal will once again prove himself to be the "star of the show." This is according to a discussion on The Royal Report by celebrated Getty royal photographer, Chris Jackson, and chief royal correspondent, Jack Royston.
"I've got to ask, we've got the coronation coming up. Do you think we're going get another star turn from Prince Louis on the Buckingham Palace balcony?" Royston asked Jackson. The photographer's new book King Charles III: A King and His Queen features a number of family shots he has captured over the years.
"Well, good question. I really remember the Platinum Jubilee. It was such an incredible time, such an exciting build-up. You know, the great thing about being a royal photographer is being in the midst of these amazing kind of celebrations for the whole nation and the world and the Commonwealth," Jackson said.
"And the Platinum Jubilee was certainly an incredible period of time. There was a huge amount of excitement in the build-up and yeah, we'll never forget those moments with Prince Louis at the pageant and on the balcony. He was really, really was the star of the show. So, yeah, fingers crossed, we will see him again in the coronation."
Through his work with the Getty picture agency, Jackson has been present at a nearly all of the highest-profile royal events of the past two decades. He has also been commissioned to photograph members of the royal family in more laidback settings.
"The great thing about royal photography is that variety of different styles and genres of photography," Jackson said. "There's obviously the kind of the balcony moments we all remember. Trooping the Colour every year—it's an opportunity to see the royal family in one place all together—and I suppose, over time, it's almost like a reference point.
"You see the children grow up. You see the family change over time, and yeah, family moments, always a huge privilege to capture," Jackson added.
"Of course, anything involves royal children or other members of the family is a little bit more special. So, yeah, it's been a huge privilege to capture some family moments in the past, and they are some of my favourite parts of the new book."
King Charles III: A King and His Queen by Chris Jackson published by Rizzoli is available now.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more