The Prince of Wales threatened to shave off his beard - in favour of just a moustache - as he met troops sporting minimal facial hair today.
The Prince, who grew his own much-discussed beard in summer 2024, admired the moustaches of men in 1st Battalion The Mercian Regiment at Bulford, Wiltshire.
Stroking his face said: 'I might end up taking mine off and leaving a tash.'
Told by Lt Jack Austin, 23, that the craze had started when 1 Mercian was serving in Estonia last year, the Prince noted that the style is 'creeping in now'.
The British Army changed its rules to allow neatly-groomed facial hair on soldiers in March 2024.
During his visit to Bulford, the Prince was shown the latest training techniques, including an exercise using drones to help with building clearance, and met families.
One mum, Maxine Debonnaire, 63, left the future King laughing after she jokingly told him she had barely seen her son since he returned from Estonia because he had been out on so many dates.
'I think we'll get on very well,' William told her, putting an arm around her as 26-year-old Lt Harris Debonnaire laughed along and confirmed he had in fact taken her out for Mother's Day.
The Prince joined the officers, soldiers, and families of B Company in the Officers' Mess to hear about their recent six-month deployment to Estonia on Operation Cabrit - the UK's contribution to NATO's Forward Land Forces in Estonia and Poland.
The Prince, who grew his own much-discussed beard in summer 2024, admired the moustaches of men in 1st Battalion The Mercian Regiment at Bulford, Wiltshire.
'How long did it take you to become a master of this?' he asked drone operatives, told that 'if you're good at video games, you're alright Sir'
During his visit to Bulford, the Prince was shown the latest training techniques, including an exercise using drones to help with building clearance, and met families.
He praised the dedication of service families and compared notes about the cold weather he experienced when he visited Estonia in March 2025.
Moving through four tables of families to talk, the Prince also entertained small children by asking if they had found the 'very big chocolate cake and cookies' on offer.
He also spent time with the female network to hear about women in the Army, asking about the progress made and what more needed to be done.
The Prince of Wales is Colonel-in-Chief of the Regiment.
The Prince also sported ear defenders to watch an exercise at the urban training facility, where a makeshift building - which William joked looked a bit like a 'bouncy castle' - had been set up for practice.
The infanteers used training weapons to simulate clearing the building, as drones flew overhead to give them better visibility.
'How long did it take you to become a master of this?' he asked drone operatives, told that 'if you're good at video games, you're alright Sir'.
He praised the exercise for its creativity, and developing skills the regiment had learned on deployment.
Afterwards, he asked those who took part about their morale, whether they were enjoying their service, keeping busy, and what he could do to help.
The Prince also presented three Long Service and Good Conduct medals to soldiers before posing for a photograph with families.