Prince William and Kate Middleton visited Southport to meet with the families of the victims of the Southport attacks in July 2024, and his reaction to the school kids struck a cord with fans.

William, Prince of Wales, along with his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, recently paid a visit to Southport to honour the victims of the tragic Southport attacks in July 2024. The devastating knife attack at a dance class claimed the lives of Alice da Silva Aguiar, Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe.

The Royal couple travelled to Southport to meet with the bereaved families and engage with locals about the profound impact the tragedy had on the close-knit community. This marks the second time that William and Kate have met with the families, having previously visited in October 2024 to extend their support to the local community and learn about how the people of Southport rallied together following the horrific incident.

During the visit, William addressed pupils at a local school. Both he and Kate made stops at Churchtown Primary School, attended by Bebe and Alice, and Farnborough Road Infant and Junior School, where Elsie was a student.

However, it was the future king’s endearing reaction to the children’s actions at the school that truly captured the hearts of those present during the visit.

Upon addressing the children, he greeted them with: “Good afternoon, everyone”.

He appeared genuinely surprised when the crowd responded in unison: “Good afternoon Mr Prince, good afternoon everybody”.

The prince couldn’t help but smile broadly, clearly touched by the respectful and sweet nature of the children.

Anna, who shared the video on X, captioned it: “Prince William’s laugh when the pupils responded in unison to his ‘Good afternoon’ greeting,” followed by a tearful emoji, one crying with laughter, and a love heart for good measure.

He humorously remarked that he’d “found the word” that he needs “to use to trigger it off” before continuing to engage with the youngsters.

People commented on how “genuine” William appears, with one admirer noting: “He clearly wasn’t expecting that response. His reaction is so sweet and genuine. Well done, children”.

“This means so much to our little seaside town. Thank you for visiting,” expressed a resident from Southport.

Another reminisced: “I remember having to do this at school, every day saying good morning to the head teacher, followed by good morning to everybody. Clearly, they were well-trained children!”.

Others praised the children as “so respectful and cute,” with one woman writing: “That is so genuinely sweet. Imagine holding such a title for children to use it. Super adorable when he genuinely wasn’t expecting to be addressed as such”.

Some fans even compared him to his late mother, Princess Diana. One person observed: “His smile is like seeing his mother still alive…disarmingly beautiful”.