"I feel cheated." Prince Charles' appearance on Masterchef leaves viewers baffled.

Masterchef viewers were well prepared for Prince Charles’ appearance on the Channel Ten cooking show with regular promos featuring the next in line to the British throne.

But when the 69-year-old royal came on he did something – or rather didn’t do something – that puzzled many watching at home. In fact, we’re pretty sure it’s a first for any guest on the popular show.

He didn’t eat anything.

“This is something I’ll remember forever!” Our contestants had the once in a lifetime opportunity to not only cater for His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales but also to meet him. @ClarenceHouse #MasterChefAU pic.twitter.com/nazeRY1NuC

— #MasterChefAU (@masterchefau) July 4, 2018

Nope. There was not a single shot of the Prince of Wales putting even one of the delicious-looking canapes on offer into his mouth – despite the contestants being told they were cooking for the royal.

Viewers shared their confusion on Twitter.

Did Prince Charles even try one of those canapés? Because I certainly didn’t see him eat one. #MasterChefAU

— Jezreel Pijo (@itsme_jezaiah) July 4, 2018

Did anyone see Prince Charles eat any of the canapes on offer? I did’nt #MasterChefAU

— megan semler (@MeganSemler) July 4, 2018

Promotion all week ‘Cook for Prince Charles’ except he doesnt eat anything. EPIC FAIL #MasterChefAU

— Adam B (@addymelb) July 4, 2018

@masterchefau Did HRH Prince Charles eat any canapes?

— Robyn (@luckyduck196721) July 4, 2018

I feel cheated that Prince Charles isn’t actually even shown eating anything #masterchefau

— Lynn Kyaw (@lynnskyaw) July 4, 2018

EXCLUSIVE: First look at contestants’ vegetarian, halal, gluten-free dish for Prince Charles #masterchefau pic.twitter.com/5tSlehqjd0

— Joe Hildebrand (@Joe_Hildebrand) July 4, 2018

Yes, he may have eaten some of the food. But viewers at home never saw it.

It wasn’t long before theories started to emerge as to why Prince Charles did or didn’t eat any of the canapes – and why him munching on a hors d’oeuvre wasn’t shown on TV.

Some suggested there may be a royal rule against showing a member of the family eating, while others questioned if it may be that the food was not deemed 100 per cent safe to eat.

Not sure: think there may be rules about royals being seen eating in public or through media???

— Kathryn entwistle (@KEnteistle) July 4, 2018

Not approved food.

— Peter ???????????????????? (@Ironman_peter) July 4, 2018

According to a royal expert The Sun spoke to, royals tend to avoid eating foods in public that could possibly give them food poisoning, like shellfish, but there doesn’t appear to be an explicitly written rule that forbids the royals from eating on TV.

However, the reason why Prince Charles eating may have been omitted from the show might come down to safety. Its believed Queen Elizabeth and the royal family do not have “food tasters” who take a bite of their dishes before they dig in to check for poison in case of an assassination attempt. Instead, all the staff who prepare the Queen’s food have gone through safety checks.

But we don’t know the protocol for eating out and about – which could be similar to the safety checks for the US president, whose Secret Service reportedly like to watch food being prepared sometimes. Perhaps this was one of the occasions Prince Charles’ staff deemed it too risky for him to eat without testing the food first.

Or perhaps his royal highness just wasn’t hungry.