Royal family
Kate Middleton did a ‘I’d probably prefer you to move on from this particular subject’ during her and Prince William’s 2010 engagement interview.
Family wasn’t a subject Kate Middleton seemed particularly excited to talk about in her and Prince William’s 2010 engagement interview. A body language expert who analyzed footage from the Prince and Princess of Wales’s first-ever joint interview noticed signs of “tension” from Kate, now 43, at the mention of her family.
Kate appeared ‘nervous’ when the Middleton family came up in her 2010 engagement interview
Shortly after William proposed during a trip to Kenya with Princess Diana’s sapphire and diamond ring, he and Kate went public with the news. It involved posing for photos in front of the press and sitting down to talk about their engagement in a TV interview.
In the documentary, Kate in Her Own Words, body language expert Judi James examined footage from William and Kate’s engagement interview, which aired on Nov. 16, 2010. Along the way she saw signs Kate wasn’t comfortable talking about her family on camera.
“We can see there are signs of tension from Kate,” James said (via Express). “Kate’s family is mentioned and this seems to make her more nervous than actually speaking about the royals.”
Kate called her family—parents Carole and Michael and siblings Pippa and James—“close-knit” in the engagement interview, noting family’s “important” to both her and William.
She looked ‘awkward’ when Prince William talked about asking for her father’s blessing
Later, when William detailed how and when he asked Kate’s father about proposing James also noticed some awkwardness from the future queen. It happened when William shared he proposed to Kate first so her dad couldn’t “really say no.”
“We can see her swallow,” James said. “She sucks her lips in and that usually is a sign of a lack of desire to talk at that particular point. Maybe feeling a little bit awkward, [or] maybe even a little bit anxious.”
Then came a telling “finger tap” from Kate. “A finger tap usually means a little bit of impatience and ‘I’d probably prefer you to move on from this particular subject,’” James added.
Another body language expert, Mike Carter, echoed the same comments, noting how Kate, at this point in the engagement interview, “hesitates” and becomes “very cautious.”
Carole and Michael Middleton made a cameo in Kate’s cancer update video
Kate’s come a long way since her and William’s engagement interview. These days she’s more open about her family. The most recent example came in September 2024 when the future queen revealed she’d completed chemotherapy treatment in a surprisingly personal video.
Not only did it feature shots of her, William, and their three children—Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis—but it also included her parents. The video showed Carole and Michael playing cards with the Wales family. (According to Kate’s brother, James, William has a history of avoiding card games with the Middletons because they’re so competitive.)
Nov. 16, 2024, marks 14 years since William and Kate’s engagement interview.
Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.
