应中国人民外交学会邀请，英国剑桥公爵威廉王子于3月1日至4日访问北京、上海和云南，此访被认为能够进一步增进英国王室和各界对中国的了解，加深两国人民间的友谊，推动中英关系在新的一年取得新的发展。

      The 4-day China tour of Britain's Prince William has gone hand in hand with the start of something new in China-UK bilateral relations.

      2015 is the first-ever Year of Cultural Exchange between the two countries, which was formally announced when Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited the UK last June. It comprises two seasons of culture - a UK season in China from March to June, and a Chinese season in the UK from July to October. The former is led by the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy in China, and the latter will be led by China's Ministry of Culture.

      This is the perhaps the largest-ever platform for the cultural exchange between the two countries.

So, given today's China-UK bilateral ties, why is such a cultural exchange platform useful? What can we expect from it?

      Ni Hao, you're listening to People In the Know, presenting you with insights into the headlines in China, and around the world, I'm Zheng Chenguang in Beijing.

      For a Chinese perspective on this, People in the Know's Ding Heng catches up with Professor Gao Jian, Deputy Director of the British Studies Center at Shanghai International Studies University.

      For a UK perspective, we are joined by Gary Rawnsley, Professor of Public Diplomacy at the Department of International Politics, Aberystwyth University in the UK.