I don’t have any issue with David Attenborough, I just think British people sort of overestimate Attenborough’s global popularity, if that makes sense. Yes, he’s a great documentarian and environmental activist, but it’s a little bit crazy to treat him as a godlike-figure who “invented” any of this. Also, he’s 99 years old and they need to let this poor man retire! He can’t retire now though, because he’s supposedly mentoring Prince William. Instead of William looking for mentorship from his father – who has been an environmentalist for decades – they’re now trying to say that William, the global statesman, is David Attenborough’s “apprentice.” William sat down with Attenborough for a YouTube conversation:
On the eve of World Oceans Day, Prince William is stepping into the role of TV host — interviewing none other than beloved naturalist Sir David Attenborough in a new short film highlighting the beauty and fragility of the world’s oceans. The five-minute conversation, released ahead of Attenborough’s upcoming documentary Ocean, sees the two passionate conservationists delve into their shared fascination with the sea and their deep concern for its future.
“[The damage done] to the ocean floor is unspeakably awful,” Attenborough says in the clip. “Something must be done before we destroy this great treasure.”
But like William, 42, Attenborough remains optimistic about what can be achieved through greater knowledge of the seas and how to protect them. Some of that comes with the awareness raised by his film. “We have an entrée into people’s front rooms,” he says.
The veteran broadcaster, who turned 99 last month (and received birthday wishes from William), also shares lighthearted memories from his early days of underwater filming — including struggling to use an old-fashioned diving helmet — before turning to the urgent message of his new film.
Ocean with David Attenborough premieres June 7 on National Geographic and begins streaming June 8 on Hulu and Disney+, coinciding with World Oceans Day. The release of William and Attenborough’s conversation follows a new installment in the Prince of Wales’ Guardians docuseries on BBC Earth’s YouTube channel. The latest episode spotlights Captain José Luis Cesena Calderon, a former illegal fisherman turned conservationist who now protects Mexico’s Sea of Cortez from poachers targeting vulnerable species like parrotfish, lobster and octopus.
So… Attenborough’s documentary streams on NatGeo, Hulu and Disney. William’s Guardians series is a YouTube project with very low viewership. Maybe William needs this apprenticeship so he won’t give speeches which sound like they came from a seventh-grader’s book report.
'The baton has been handed over and Prince William has become David Attenborough's sorcerer's apprentice.'
Former Royal correspondent Charles Rae discusses Prince William's passion towards tackling environmental issues. pic.twitter.com/1hxZOcCPEO
— GB News (@GBNEWS) June 8, 2025
Photos courtesy of YouTube screenshots and William’s IG.
Nobody with any passion or ethics would EVER “hand over the baton” to WorkShy Willie. Unless they were ready to watch everything they worked for dwindle and die from neglect.
When when says “sorcerer’s apprentice” I automatically think of the movie Fantasia and the huge blunder that occurs when Mackey tries to work smarter and makes a huge mess of things…Maybe that is what they are referring to with Workshy Will.
That was my first thought too. Either it’s an underhanded reference to trying to do something the easy way rather than the right way, or it’s just a really badly chosen wording.
This dcoumentary is actually in cinemas in my country!
Also, how is William not super embarassed by this kind of coverage. It is super cringeworthy and even though I do not like this man, I get secondhand embarrassment here. A 40 something man had a surface level convo with a respected enviromental documentarian and now he is suddenly the “sorcerer’s apprentice”. Yikes.
The way the British tabloids infantilizes the middleaged future head of state while pretending to embiggen him is something to study. The improper and too frequently use of hyperbole is definitely a factor. My question is: do they do this on purpose because it is the only way to shade this lazy git or is this just standard tabloid language? Either way someone should be embarrassed, either for being described this way or writing and publishing this dreck. Speaks to a completely lack of self-respect.
You just have to laugh! 🤣
Delusions run deep for that family, and you’re right you just have to laugh at the Willy’s stupidity and lack of self awareness. Sometimes I do wonder what his standardized test or IQ scores were, I imagine they were pretty low.
I don’t recall Charles EVER being talked about like this at the same age? Charles has a work ethic and endless interests and hobbies. Will is a shut-off person who’d prefer to be rich and unbothered in an insulated world of privilege. He would prefer to be unknown and private behind walls, dark glasses and a beard. Yet he’s trapped and having put off responsibility as much as possible and for as long as possible and remaining unprepared and reluctant and resentful suddenly it is showtime!! His team have no option but to spin slothfulness into significance trying to make bricks with straw. Will is all advertising but no actual product and becoming king will cruelly expose him because he can’t delegate everything to OAP relatives.
On the contrary, Charles was mocked by the tabloids for his views on environment. Nobody was praising Charles for doing his job and he was actually doing his job, representing QE2 everywhere in the world, not just in the football stadiums.
A royal case of ‘All Hat and No Cattle’ is the perfect description of the Other Brother! The deal the BRF made with the British media is soon to be exposed to all as the greatest waste of money when that sloth Willy burns the whole institution to the ground! I look forward to show.
David Attenborough has had some questionable opinions on population growth that border on eugenics so he’s not the hero that the BBC and other British press have made him out to be over the decades.
David Attenborough and Willy have both said there are too many people in Africa, I guess you could call one of them an apprentice.
“In 2013, the saintly David Attenborough suggested that it was “barmy” to send food to famine-stricken parts of the world because it encouraged population growth.”
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/06/spirit-of-eugenics-is-still-with-us-as-immigrants-know-to-their-cost
I don’t know about the rest of the world but the King has been banging on about the environment for many years, it took David Attenborough to make people take notice and to care. To me, it seemed to be that island of plastic in the Pacific ocean that he showed us that made most people sit up and finally take notice.
David Attenborough has been talking about the environment for longer than Charles. And other famous people have too. You would think from some Royal supporters there was no environmental movement before Charles.
😂😂😂. I like Attenborough but as for Peg replacing him? No no no no no. The earth and oceans deserve way better than Peg to speak for them.
Sooo what you’re saying is Will is the kid who goes into someone’s domain and attempts to be a big boy but actually effs everything up, leaving it all for the real grown ups to fix it?
Sounds pretty on the nose to me.
Peg didn’t earn any of this, it’s nepotism at its finest. Who else will be used to prop up this lazy man-child? My thoughts and prayers go to the real activists doing the work and getting zero recognition.
I watched a funny twisted version of this story on SKY news UK on Saturday. SKY news tried hard to promote Willi and his speech at the event in Monaco. They showed the conversation between Willi and David Attenborough. Afterwards they had Jack Royston commenting on this clip saying that Willi put some “royal stardust” on David Attenborough’s new film about the ocean. I was lmao.
I think the objective is the opposite. For William to get some Attenborough stardust.
William does not have the intellectual acumen to be anyone’s apprentice. This man is simply dumb and expects things to be handled for him and all he has to do is read what he is given. Association does not bring about knowledge.
This is so embarrassing. Pegs looks ridiculous posing as an expert.
That William and KP never make any connections between Charles environmentalism and Williams “passion” for the environment is indicative of their lack of relationship. If William and Charles were in any way close they would have some type of shared venture in environmentalism or even just a shared event on the topic in the last decade
This! Only Willnot would try to reinvent the wheel in the hopes of overshadowing his own father’s decades long interest in environmentalism. Also, using David Attenborough to embiggen himself is par for the course. As someone who routinely uses private jets and helicopters on a daily basis, Willnot has some nerve even calling himself a protector of the environment! By rights, Attenborough should be calling out his hypocrisy, not enabling it!
Chuck and Willy have multiple homes that they fly between. That’s one obvious connection. Chuck has exclusively flown private jets for years. Sounds like Willy uses helicopters to fly around UK, but it’s not reported to the public if a trip costs less than £15,000. Don’t recall either of them talking about carbon offsets, ever. Willy might look dumb, but imho he’s smart enough to break a “trip” into multiple legs to keep the costs below £15,000.
William is,too lazy to take it on just parroting the oceans are so important
Lordy, sure. It’s the juvenile way they write that’s sooo embarrassing. The embiggening and infantilizing.
Willie is all (fancy) hat and no cattle.
It’s like will is treated,like the schoolchild going to science guy shows.
UK are being swindled over FK who is constantly being misrepresented as an impactful leader in waiting. He’s had his whole life to prepare for kingship but he kept putting it off and hoped he’d be 60 before anything substantial was expected of him. He’s not now not has he ever been disciplined enough to put in the work on a daily basis to be comfortable in such a responsible and public and diplomatic role. All these puff pieces only emphasize the gap between reality and Will ‘s current capacity and capability. Insulting people ‘s intelligence with all this bilge!
all I can hear in my own mind is Sheldon from the Young Sheldon series being carted off by his father from the high school science fair, screaming, “MEDIOCRITY!!!!! You’re rewarding MEDIOCRITY!!!!”
Oh my… so sadly pathetic .
Lol, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is about a guy who tries to take shortcuts by using magic he doesn’t understand and ends up causing chaos.
The following certainly applies to this prince: “I’ll never get rid of the ghosts I’ve called”. And that didn’t mean anything good. It ended in the French Revolution.
The apprentice’s huge lack of competence led to chaos.
The seabed around the island belongs to the Windsors. The water quality of the sea, rivers and lakes in the UK is very poor. He doesn’t work with a single organisation of citizens. The fishermen have to buy their licences from the Windsors and are very angry because there are fewer and fewer fish and the water is polluted by untreated sewage. Why don’t we hear anything from him? On the ground, where his work would be visible and nobody accepts empty words.
I’m also old enough to remember when newly wed William and Kate attended a formal production event that Sir Attenborough was also present for.
I remember them snickering rudely at his having adorned 3-D glasses before being prompted. It was sneering mockery, and I felt horribly for Sir Attenborough, who has likely long since lost his hearing and might have trouble in loud auditoriums distinguishing instructions being given from a podium.
Funny how he’s scrambling now for favour and a slice of the spotlight Sir Attenborough generates. It’s ghastly to me to see in real time how far and how fast the Wales’ reputations and credibility have fallen.
O the “real” Willie is emerging.. say what?
the older generation will leave the planet and he will be full exposed as the incompetent and quite nasty poser he is
I doubt they’ve seen the classic Disney film. They just knew the phrase and that it related to Disney. You know, where the Sussexes were just having a wonderfully fun family vacation
They’re trying so hard to draw some sort of clever parallel….”Look, Harry, his black wife, and biracial children who we don’t like were at Disney instead of working hard to save the oceans like our obedient white prince with the white wife.”
They probably hurt themselves coming up with this malarkey.
Never mind being called a sorcerer’s apprentice isn’t a compliment….lol
David Attenborough has near Saint status in the UK. He is not being forced to work and does not want to retire, although he does way less than he used to.
He is passionate about the environment and seems happy to let anyone pose next to him if it helps spread his message.
I think he will know full well that William is full of shit, but if it gets his message to a wider audience beyond the UK, he will do it.
I noticed the BBC news about William and Attenborough at first made William look like a fool just listening to Attenborough. The next time it was on, they really pushed how important William was as a big boy statesman, but I doubt many people are buying it.
In one pic, Wilbur is trying to look intelligent while David spoke. Or maybe he looked confused. Wilbur hates to deal with the public because he’s so bad/cringe about it. He is not a people person unless that person is himself.
Why do the British media keep writing and publishing this patent garbage? Is someone or something forcing them? I read somewhere they’re afraid they’d never get another interview with William or Kate, or invited to garden parties. But what if they all banded together to agree that enough is enough, they’re going to tell the truth about the Waleses? For the good of the country, because William needs a kick in the butt, or something. BP and KP couldn’t survive without the press, if they tried to publish them all, could they? Maybe the British media are so slimy they don’t trust each other to live up to an agreement like this.
@Me at home, if BRF ends, what will the royal reporters do? That is their job. Will made a few threats now that he doesn’t care if the monarchy ends, he will leave with his family. That is why they turned into a propaganda machine.