On Thursday, Prince William attended the Sovereign’s Parade at the Royal Air Force College. He obviously stepped in for his father, although I do not know if the switch was always planned that way or if Charles canceled at the last minute. William certainly didn’t look like he’d been planning to do this event – he looked like he crawled out of a bottle and put on an Air Force dress uniform without showering. His posture is awful and he’s honestly lost an alarming amount of weight over the course of the year.

Of course, no one is talking about any of that. Instead, they’re talking about his creepy beard. Kensington Palace is doing the most to encourage reporters/supporters to say that the “rugged” beard is making “royal fans weak in the knees.” It’s like we’re watching the royal propaganda campaign unfold in real time and absolutely no royal reporter will mention how creepy it is that William feels the need to copy his brother’s facial hair.

At this Royal Air Force event, William’s aunt, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, also turned up. Rebecca English tweeted that Lady Sarah “heard he was in the area and wanted to support him.” Yeah, more like William is salty that the Spencer family has shown so much love and support for Harry this year, so William is making a point of cozying up to them too.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.