The future King donned his flat cap and headed off to Lower Blakemere Farm in Hereford, where he spent some time with Phil and Heather Gorringe and their son Monty

Prince William was in his element as enjoyed a very rural royal outing this week.

The future king – who, like Princess Kate, has a known love of the outdoors – headed to Lower Blakemere Farm in Hereford, where he met with Phil and Heather Gorringe along with their son, Monty. And he made quite an impression on the family.

Heather has opened up about William’s down-to-earth visit, which saw him shown a new grain store and some regenerative farming equipment at work, before joining the Gorringes on a walk around the farm – which stands on Duchy of Cornwall land – to check out their composting projects.

Heather told People: “He’s such a nice guy, isn’t he? He seems really down to earth — and miles taller than I ever imagined. And he loved the worms, so that was really great.”

The worms in question were a part of the ‘Wiggly Wigglers wormery’, which was created by Heather for their domestic waste. William appeared fascinated by the construction.

“Wormery? Is that a technical term?” he asked his hostess. “Oh my goodness, look at that,” he further marvelled at the household waste and the dark material it created. “It’s like black gold,” Heather told him.

Despite his position as the future king, William is universally praised for his down-to-earth nature. Just recently he stunned onlookers when he stopped off at a Wetherspoons pub in Binrmingham to enjoy a pint with fellow Aston Villa fans.

One fan, Steve Jones, 56, said of the Prince: “He was fantastic. I was quite amazed about how engaged he was with the club and his interest. He’s not a fair weather fan. He really loves the club with a passion. We spoke about the club, the transfers, the pending Champions League trip to Monaco, and all things Aston Villa. He asked many questions, he’s got a good level of interest.”

Steve continued: “It was 95 per cent chat about Villa as that’s our shared interest but a bit about his family. Young George is a Villa fan but he didn’t want all three to be Villa fans. He was massively interested and seemed a really genuine guy and all he wanted to do is talk about Villa.”

According to former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond, the low-key outings are all part of William’s plan for a more down-to-earth royal approach .

She told the Mirror : “For a while now, William has been putting into action the way that he intends to do the job. And that, as he now made clear, is royal with a small r. You could say that the small ‘r’ also stands for relatable, because that is what he is showing himself to be.

Jennie continued: “I think he gets quite a kick out of surprising people – by taking calls in a restaurant, serving people from burger stalls or dropping into a pub to buy a round of drinks. I think William finds it refreshing to be able to interact without all the fuss that generally goes with a royal visit. And I’m sure he also realises that in PR terms, it is extremely effective. It’s important for the Royal Family to be in touch as much as possible with the way ordinary people feel.”