Prince William tried to lighten the mood as he posed for a group photo.
On Tuesday 3 October, the Prince and Princess of Wales visited the Grange Pavilion in Cardiff, Wales. While standing for a group photo, he began to tell a joke so everyone would smile for the camera. In a video of the amusing moment, which was shared to TikTok, William can be heard saying: “Who’s pinching my bottom?”
His joke resulted in the entire room laughing, as everyone successfully sported big smiles for the final photo.
In fact, telling a joke to achieve the perfect photo must be a trait that runs in the royal family. Prince William’s late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, previously used this technique to take a group photo as well.
The viral TikTok compared William’s joke with one snarky comment Queen Elizabeth made during her G7 Summit appearance in June 2021. In a video shared by the BBC, the late monarch could be heard asking her fellow world leaders: “Are you supposed to be looking as if you’re enjoying yourself?”
The Prince and Princess of Wales were in Cardiff to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the HMT Empire Windrush to the United Kingdom, in addition to the start of Black History Month in the UK. Those who posed for the group photo included the Windrush Cymru Elders, Black History Cymru 365, and the Ethnic Minority Youth Forum. The royal couple met with members of the Black community in Cardiff to learn about the positive impact they’ve made.
During their visit, William and Kate listened to members of a group called the “Windrush generation” - the name given to people who relocated to the UK between 1948 and 1973, particularly those from the Caribbean. The relocation began when the HMT Empire Windrush first arrived in London, carrying 1,000 people from the Caribbean to the UK.
One of the Windrush Cymru, Professor Uzo Iwobi, explained in an interview with People how special it was to have members of the royal family listen to the work they’ve accomplished.
“They’ve shone a light on a community that has been written out of history,” Iwobi told the outlet. “It is a light that cannot be extinguished. These elders will take this to their grave. They will never forget that one of the biggest leaders of their nation remembered them, travelled all this way and said thank you.”
She went on to describe how both William and Kate were very personable and authentic to every person they spoke to, and that Prince William even asked to give her a hug before he left.
“He said to me: ‘Can I please have a hug? You have been so lovely to us,’” she said. “I said: ‘I oblige!’ I grabbed him, yeah. It was a very good hug, like a brother.”
The professor continued: “The good thing about him is how human he is, how understated he is and how very ordinary he wanted to be. He didn’t want bowing and stuff. He was a Prince of Wales that people could relate to, that was warming for the elders.”
