Painting, digging and s’mores: Fans can’t get enough of Prince Louis’ first royal engagement

Five-year-old Prince Louis made his first royal engagement at the Big Help Out initiative

Prince Louis has once again sent fans wild after he getting his hands dirty and eating some s’mores during his first-ever royal engagement.

On Monday (8 May), the Prince and Princess of Wales were joined by their three children to volunteer with a local Scout group as part of the Big Help Out initiative – a special bank holiday set aside for volunteering in tribute to King Charles III’s lifetime of public service.

The outing marked the first official royal engagement for five-year-old Prince Louis, who helped his brother and sister renovate a Scouts hut at the 3rd Upton Scout Group in Slough. The young royals joined their parents with tasks such as excavating, resetting a path, and hand painting a mural.

While Prince Louis didn’t attend the coronation concert on Sunday evening because it was past his bedtime, the young royal appeared to have quite some fun at the volunteer event. The five-year-old had no trouble getting his hands dirty when he took control of a wheelbarrow and sat with his father in a big yellow digger.

In one video posted to Twitter, Louis could be seen shovelling some soil into a wheelbarrow as fans pointed out his “impressive” gardening skills.

“I could use him in the garden. Impressive!” said one fan.

“He definitely knows how to use a shovel, you can tell it’s something he’s done before,” another wrote. “He’s not mucking about with little loads either, really getting stuck in.”

Another clip showed the young royal having fun with some painting, as Princess Kate assisted him and Charlotte in finding a spot on the wall mural for their hand print.

As Prince William climbed into the seat of a large excavator, his sons took turns in helping him move big piles of dirt.

“When Louis saw his big brother George having a go at the digger he made VERY clear that he wanted a go too!” wrote one fan on Twitter.

In the video, Louis took a seat on his father’s lap, as William showed him the machine’s controls.

Perhaps the best moment from the volunteer event came when Louis took a bite out of a messy s’more.

After he devoured one marshmallow on a stick, Kate instructed Louis to throw the stick into the fire before grabbing another one, as seen in one video posted on Twitter.

“Prince Louis is such a character,” they captioned the clip, which showed a volunteer helping them put graham crackers in between the toasted marshmallow.

“What do you say?” Kate asked Louis after he was given the s’more. He replied, “Thank you”, and tucked into the gooey treat. Off to the side, Prince William could be heard saying: “You’ve made his day. We won’t hear a peep out of him now.”

The five-year-old then appeared to tumble over, seemingly reacting to the delicious s’more. “I have the same expression when I bite into a s’more,” replied one fan.

The royal family went on to do some archery and drilling, before it was time to leave the Scout hut. As Kate said goodbye to volunteers, another sweet video showed Louis reaching for his mother as she shook hands with well-wishers. The family outing was also a special occasion for the Princess of Wales, who has been Joint President of the Scouts since 2020.

It has been a busy weekend for the Waleses, who celebrated the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Saturday 6 May. The coronation service took place at Westminster Abbey, where Prince George served as one of his grandfather’s Pages of Honour. Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis were also seen sharing a sweet sibling moment as they held hands inside the Abbey.

After the ceremony, the royal family appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace alongside the King and Queen, where Prince Louis became an internet sensation once again with his double handed wave and uncontrollable yawning.

Prince George and Princess Charlotte then joined their parents for the coronation concert at Windsor Castle on Sunday evening, but Louis was absent due to the late nature of the show. Their eldest children were seen laughing and dancing throughout the concert, which had special appearances from Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, and the Muppets.