Such is William’s transformation he even rocks waders and rubber gloves, writes AMANDA PLATELL as the prince turns back into a royal hunk

Holy moly, Prince William rocks up solo in New York wearing a cotton shirt unbuttoned just enough to hint at a muscular chest.

He is wearing waders and strolls nonchalantly waist-deep into the waters off Manhattan to save some endangered oysters (of all things) – and suddenly he’s America’s sex god! To millions of adoring mostly female American fans, the world is now William’s oyster.

Wills Wows in Waders, they cried, as pictures from his visit to a project to repopulate the Hudson River with, yes, oysters went viral yesterday. William’s two-day trip to the US to promote his planet-saving Earthshot Prize is a rare outing without the Princess of Wales who, although looking chic in her Roland Mouret suit while visiting an East London youth charity yesterday, couldn’t steal her husband’s thunder. William was setting social media alight all by himself, with women across the US swooning over the ‘handsome and sexy prince’.

The Prince of Wales with volunteers by the Hudson River during his visit to the Billion Oyster Project as part of his two-day visit to New York

AMANDA PLATELL: With hindsight, perhaps we can trace the transition from gormless to gorgeous to when he had his first Covid jab back in May 2021 (pictured)

AMANDA PLATELL: He and Kate are fitness fanatics, cycling, sailing, running, trampolining, wild swimming, anything involving a racquet or a ball

‘Who thought waders could look so good!’ one drooled on Twitter. ‘William got not only the brains gene but also all the handsome genes,’ cried another.

Others became decidedly steamy. ‘If this isn’t HOT, I don’t know what is?’

Phew. As he emerged dripping from the Hudson, it was Colin Firth’s Mr Darcy all over again. Should we really be surprised by his new sexy status across the pond? We already knew William was popular in the US. Rather astonishingly, he came top of a recent Gallup poll there of the world’s most trusted public figures, beating Ukraine’s President Zelensky into second place.

When asked why they’d voted for William, those polled cited his charity work which went ‘beyond borders’. Eat your hearts out Harry and Megs. As they tank in popularity in the US, Wills soars – and so by all accounts do temperatures whenever he’s around.

Was it the glimpse of his muscular forearms revealed beneath his rolled-up shirt, the broad masculine shoulders, or the very long, firm thighs straining against the waders that sent women swooning? Or perhaps it was just that for once he was grabbing headlines without Kate by his side. We all love the princess, but whenever they’re out together, her beauty and style always take centre stage and no one really notices William at all.

And yet it is all a bit bewildering for us folk back home. Yes, he was a heart-throb when younger, a teenage pin-up even – I’m thinking Gary Barlow meets Justin Bieber. At university, when he wooed Kate with all those lovely blond wavy curls and the smile he inherited from his mum Princess Diana, he melted hearts across the nation. Gosh, he was sweet. But, well, it didn’t seem to last, did it? Rather quickly, William went the way of most Windsors, losing his hair and, seemingly, his confidence in his looks with it. By his mid-thirties he was almost bald. For about a decade now, we all thought William was seen worldwide as a bit of a boring dad figure. But now his Royal Hotness is back. With hindsight, perhaps we can trace the transition from gormless to gorgeous to when he had his first Covid jab back in May 2021.

As he thanked NHS staff, he rolled up his sleeve for the camera – and revealed a very ripped bicep.

I’m sorry. Any woman with a beating heart was thinking, if his arms are so hot, what else is? 

William, Prince of Wales arrives to Pier 4 Beach after visiting the Billion Oyster Project on Governor’s Island

AMANDA PLATELL: He was a heart-throb when younger, a teenage pin-up even – I’m thinking Gary Barlow meets Justin Bieber. At university, when he wooed Kate with all those lovely blond wavy curls (pictured)

By his mid-thirties he was almost bald. For about a decade now, we all thought William was seen worldwide as a bit of a boring dad figure

Now it seems obvious – of course he’s taut and toned. He and Kate are fitness fanatics, cycling, sailing, running, trampolining, wild swimming, anything involving a racquet or a ball. It is very much part of their family ethos: healthy body, healthy mind, enjoying the great outdoors and all that. Under those boring suits we always hoped there was the body and passionate heart of an Adonis, and now we know there is.

Just look at him now – captivating hearts in America, wearing beautifully fitted suits worthy of a Vogue cover that enhance his slimline body. Yesterday he positively oozed confidence as he greeted the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to discuss the fight against climate change and protecting the environment. Diana would be so proud. In New York we see a new confident William, who has at last reconciled the various parts of himself that once seemed so at odds. Dad, eco-warrior, designer suit-wearer, international statesman, saver of endangered oysters.

Captivated Americans now hail William as their very own Prince Charming. They see in him his mother’s warmth, her ability to engage with anyone, whether they’re homeless or living in a great palace, her sincerity. And boy did they love Diana, who was also, let’s not forget, a fitness fanatic with a shy smile that eventually grew and delighted the world. Maybe America is falling in love all over again – not just with William, but with the echoes of his beloved mother.

Whatever the case, it’s a moment to savour, and to make us all rather proud.