Prince Louis Has Been a Royal Balcony Superstar Longer Than You Think

Prince William and Kate Middleton's youngest son, Prince Louis, has become a much-loved presence at royal events in recent years, winning praise for his cheeky antics and humorous interactions with family members.

The prince won headlines during Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee celebrations last year for his hilarious reactions on Buckingham Palace's balcony to the specially organized flypast of Royal Air Force aircraft, covering his ears and shouting in delight.

Two more likely balcony appearances are coming up this year with King Charles' coronation in May and then the Trooping the Colour event in June. Before then, fans have shared an endearing clip of Louis' Buckingham Palace debut, proving that he has been a royal balcony superstar for longer than you might think.

In a video uploaded to TikTok by user rm9498gul, members of the royal family are shown making the traditional balcony appearance that marks the end of the Trooping the Colour.

The annual event each June marks the monarch's birthday with a review of troops, along with the flypast, and is traditionally attended by a number of royal family members.

The TikTok clip, which has been viewed over 130,000 times, shows the 2019 Trooping balcony appearance, which was Louis' first, having celebrated his first birthday in April.

In the video, Louis is seen reaching out for his father, Prince William as his siblings, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, watch.

Fans have praised the clip, with one commenter writing: "Beautiful family."

"Little Louis. He's going to be trouble. We all have one in our family," wrote another.

One user commented: "Louis - little legend."

The prince's most recent Buckingham balcony appearance was made at the end of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. It was also the last made by Elizabeth before her death just three months later, in September.

The prince joined his siblings, parents and then-Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, as well as the queen, to sing the national anthem as crowds lined the Mall outside the palace. The royal children won praise from fans for knowing the words to the anthem by heart.

While this was the highlight of the jubilee festivities, Louis became a central focus for the special pageant earlier in the day, when he was observed growing restless while watching the three-hour-long event.

The young royal was seen moving from knee to knee of his family members as the event went on, finally ending up on the lap of his grandfather, Charles.

At another point, the prince grew tired and was seen covering his mother's mouth with his hand, which led to a parenting debate online.

Kate was criticized for the way she handled the situation, but fans and notable figures, including TV supernanny Jo Frost, spoke out in her defense.

At the close of the weekend-long celebrations, William and Kate appeared to acknowledge their youngest son's starring role in a tweet thanking the public for their support.

"Thank you to everyone who turned out to show their gratitude to The Queen and her inspiring 70 years of leadership. From the crowds on the Mall to communities hosting street parties up and down the country, we hope you had a weekend to remember," the couple said on Twitter.

"We all had an incredible time, especially Louis... 👀"

Louis' last public appearance was during the royals' Christmas Day visit to church on the king's Sandringham estate, where he met members of the public with his parents and siblings.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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