Overview
- ITV aired Steve Backshall’s Royal Arctic Challenge on December 18, with Royal Family social posts showing the King watching 1975 footage at the Palace.
- The King laughed at his bowler-hat ice dive and inflated snowsuit antics, yet noted he is too old to repeat the ordeal, calling the experience “bloody cold.”
- Backshall retraced the under-ice dive and high-speed snowmobile run to compare conditions, with the film citing research that the Arctic is warming about three times the global rate.
- Charles emphasized listening to Indigenous expertise and urged adaptation, backing scientists and questioning public disbelief in climate evidence.
- Coverage also focused on presentation, with a Daily Mail review criticizing Backshall’s interview style and etiquette during the on-camera exchange with the King.