Prince William to appear on Apple’s Time to Walk broadcast

The duke will discuss the importance of mental fitness in a special episode

(Getty Images)

The Duke of Cambridge has joined forces with Apple to take part in the company’s Time to Walk broadcast.

The venture marks an unusual step for the royal, who rarely speaks outside of official engagements, and sees him discuss three songs that are meaningful to him, in line with the format of the show.

Prince William also talks about how important it is to keep mentally fit, as well as physically, and shares a story about how he was unexpectedly taken out of his comfort zone.

Time To Walk is part of Apple Fitness+, the subscription service built around the Apple Watch and is designed to be listened to when you’re out for a walk.

This episode, however, has been made available to be listened to for free to ensure it can be enjoyed by a wider audience.

Each episode of Time To Walk consists of a guest taking a walk and talking about their lives, in addition to choosing songs.

Usually, as the walk progresses, photographs briefly pop up on the Apple Watch display, timed to coincide with the story the guest is telling.

Over two seasons, previous guests have included Dolly Parton, Stephen Fry, Shawn Mendes, Malcolm Gladwell, Anthony Joshua, Naomi Campbell and Jane Fonda.

(Apple)

The duke’s appearance comes after three royal households – Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace and Clarence House – released a joint statement in response to BBC programme The Princes and the Press, criticising the broadcaster for giving credibility to “overblown and unfounded claims”.

The programme explored the relationship that the Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex both had with the media and included suggestions that royal sources were briefing journalists behind the scenes.

The statement said: “A free, responsible and open press is of vital importance to a healthy democracy. However, too often it is overblown and unfounded claims from unnamed sources that are presented as facts and it is disappointing when anyone, including the BBC, gives them credibility.”

This episode of Time to Walk will air through a special broadcast on Apple Music 1, the company’s free-to-listen radio station available to anyone with an Apple ID.

It rounds out the second season of Time To Walk. If you have an Apple Fitness+ subscription, the episodes will land automatically in your Apple Watch on a Monday morning, with the previous thirty-plus episodes readily available, too.

The first broadcast is Monday, 6 December at 8AM GMT, followed by 4PM and 9PM the same day. The episode lasts around 40 minutes.