News

Prince William has been meeting Big Issue vendors again

Just days after Prince William tried his hand at selling The Big Issue, the future king bumped into another vendor in Cambridge.

Eamonn Kelly meets Prince William and wife Kate

Kate and William at Christ the Redeemer church, Newmarket Road, Cambridge. They are shown with Big Issue vendor Eamonn Kelly who welcomed the pair to the nearby pod home where he has lived for two years. Image: CambridgeshireLive

Prince William hit the headlines earlier this month after his spell selling The Big Issue – now it has been revealed the future king has caught up with another vendor just days later.  

During a visit to modular homes development Jimmy’s in Cambridge, William, this time with Catherine, posed with our man Eamonn Kelly after spending 45 minutes chatting to the vendor on his sofa on June 23.

Kelly, 52, who sells The Big Issue on Trinity Street in the city, has lived in the pod for two years and was happy to welcome the royal couple into his home as part of William’s continued education on homelessness.

“I always liked William because he reminds me of his mum and he is like her: he’s loyal, he’s down-to-earth and he doesn’t judge you. I told him my mum died five months ago and he told me he knows what that’s like. He shook my hand and told me it doesn’t get any easier,” said Eamonn, who has been selling The Big Issue magazine for 15 years.

“He’s a down-to-earth guy. We spoke about homelessness and he told he’d never seen a place as clean as my pod. I said I try!  I told him how I had a crack habit for six years but now I’m clean as a whistle”.

Prince William tried his hand at selling The Big Issue earlier in June alongside London seller Dave Martin.

Prince WIlliam and Big Issue seller Dave Martin in red Big Issue hats and tabards stand in conversation as an elderly woman walks past
A slow start gave Prince William and Big Issue seller Dave Martin a chance to chat. Image: Andy Parsons/Big Issue

The future monarch, who donned the iconic red tabard as part of his 40th birthday celebrations said he “refused to believe that homelessness is an irrevocable fact of life” after his spell selling the magazine.

“I wanted to experience the other side and see what it was like to be a Big Issue vendor. My time was truly eye opening,” said William. “ I was lucky to join Dave on a warm, sunny day in June. People recognised a familiar face and were happy to give me the time of day. But that isn’t the case for the vast majority of Big Issue vendors.”

Read more about what happened when Prince William sold The Big Issue:

Support the Big Issue

For over 30 years, the Big Issue has been committed to ending poverty in the UK. In 2024, our work is needed more than ever. Find out how you can support the Big Issue today.
Vendor martin Hawes

Recommended for you

View all
Calls to nationalise Thames Water as Brits face 40% increase in bills: 'A con and a disgrace'
Water bills

Calls to nationalise Thames Water as Brits face 40% increase in bills: 'A con and a disgrace'

Will free school meals and vouchers be offered over the Easter holidays?
Free school meals/ Easter holidays
Free school meals

Will free school meals and vouchers be offered over the Easter holidays?

Leaked letter to Tory MPs reveals renting reforms will be 'watered down' to 'appease landlords'
Renters Reform Bill
RENTING

Leaked letter to Tory MPs reveals renting reforms will be 'watered down' to 'appease landlords'

Council tax is going up for millions in April. Here's what to do if you're struggling to pay
council tax/ houses
Cost of living crisis

Council tax is going up for millions in April. Here's what to do if you're struggling to pay

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Here's when UK households to start receiving last cost of living payments
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Here's when UK households to start receiving last cost of living payments

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know