Prince Charles reigns as this year's fashion icon in GQ magazine's best dressed list

When it comes to the wardrobes of the Windsor clan, we’re quick to praise Kate and Meghan’s covetable style – and all too often guilty of side-stepping the men of the royal establishment.

But in a surprising turn of events, Prince Charles is in the running to become the nation’s most influential fashion muse.

This year, the 70-year-old has moved from 20th place to an impressive sixth in GQ magazine’s annual best dressed list courtesy of his thrifty regal aesthetic.

To emphasise the scale of his latest achievement, Prince Charles sits beside the likes of star of the moment Timothée Chalamet, ‘Bodyguard’ actor Richard Madden and the forever fabulous Jeff Goldblum.

So with Travis Scott’s streetwear-heavy wardrobe and David Beckham’s ‘Peaky Blinders’-inspired closet also topping the charts – how did Charles secure a reigning spot in GQ‘s annual list?

The heir to the throne has undoubtedly had many an opportunity to showcase his style over the past year with two royal weddings, Prince Louis of Cambridge’s christening and his 70th birthday celebrations dominating the headlines.

With a penchant for smart suits and Sloanie countryside gear, the royal is certainly a cliché but it’s his thrifty nature that really earned him the recognition.

In what makes Kate and Meghan’s attempt at recycling previous looks seem half-hearted, their father-in-law has his suits regularly stitched and patched up – often revisiting clothes spanning decades.

According to Country Life magazine, he asks go-to tailors Anderson & Sheppard to keep leftover material so that his bespoke outfits can be given a new lease of life every few years.

It is believed that the makeshift box of assorted material includes patches from the grey morning suit he wore to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s May 19 nuptials.

Though it’s not the first time he’s proven that he isn’t one to follow trends, as his Royal Air Force uniform reportedly dates back to 1972 while he still wears a trusty pair of shoes he purchased back in 1971.

In an interview with an Australian publication earlier this year, the royal said on his wardrobe: “I have always believed in trying to keep as many of my clothes and shoes going for as long as possible (some go back to 1971 and one jacket to 1969!) – through patches and repairs – and in this way I tend to be in fashion once every 25 years.”

“It is extraordinary how fashions change and, speaking as someone who, on the whole, hates throwing away things without finding another use for them or mending them, I couldn’t be more delighted if, at last, there is a growing awareness of the urgent need to get away from the ‘throwaway society’ and to move towards a more ‘circular economy’.”

We don’t know about you but we’re certainly going to take a leaf out of Prince Charles’ fashion book this season…

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