BAFTA viewers were loving the rare chance to see a PDA between the Prince and Princess of Wales as they walked the red carpet on Sunday night.
Clips of Kate Middleton cheekily giving her husband a pat on the behind have gone viral since the royal couple headed into the star-studded ceremony, broadcast on BBC One last night.
But now a lip reader has suggested the intimate moment between the pair may not have been as it seemed, as writes the Mirror.
In the footage, something seems to grab the attention of Kate and she turns her head in dramatic style to see what's going on while Prince William keeps looking straight ahead.
Lip-reading expert Jeremy Freeman reckons in that moment she can also be seen mouthing to William: "How did you miss that?".
Jeremy told the Mirror that William replied by asking: "What?" before Kate said: "Stop ignoring" - although it can't be made out who she tells him to stop ignoring.
And William then replied by saying: "Ignoring who?" before Kate carried out the cheeky pat on the bum.
Meanwhile body language expert Judy James added she believes the unusual affection between the royals may actually have been a "sexy reprimand".
Judy said: "As they walk past the crowds, Kate seems to look back to acknowledge a complimentary comment with a smile. She then pushes her right hand out towards William’s in what looks like a cue to hold hands.
"William mistakenly leans in to suggest he is expecting more of the flirty whispering they have been doing and raises his hand as his head gets closer, missing Kate’s offer.
"Kate then 'rewards' William with a pat on the bum. So this works as both a sexy ritual or appreciation and a small reprimand for missing her cue."
Last night's BAFTA ceremony was the first the Prince and Princess of Wales have attended in three years as the 2021 event was axed due to the pandemic.
A pre-recorded tribute to the late Queen was paid by Dame Helen Mirren at the star-studded bash, who famously played the late monarch in the 2006 biopic The Queen.
William and Kate were watching from the centre of the front row as Dame Helen said: "Cinema at its best does what Her Majesty did effortlessly – bring us together and unite us through a story.
"Your Majesty, you were our nation’s leading star."
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