Oh, Prince William. This royal guy is certainly known for his cheekiness, and we have a good feeling that it's one of the reasons that the lovely Kate Middleton fell for him all those years ago at university. And while he is best when he's being snarky or sarcastic, the Duke of Cambridge has also been known to say some pretty thoughtful things over his years in the spotlight. He and his wife are passionate about mental health issues, and in turn, this has encouraged him to speak out about his own struggles. Because of this, he has opened up about his heartbreak over his mother's death quite often.
While it's a difficult subject to discuss, we think it's made Prince William all the more relatable to the public, and we're sure it's helped him cope with some things as well. But every time William goes to speak in front of a crowd, it's not all so serious. The duke covers topics from loving the Duchess of Cambridge since they were in college to how his kids are doing. Since the royal family is usually tight-lipped about what's going on behind palace walls, we'll take whatever we can get from the prince.
The duke usually sticks to the things people want to know about, like those adorable Cambridge kids, but every once in a while, we can get a frank and candid conversation out of him. It's not often, but he's always inspiring and encouraging when he opens up! Here are 25 of Prince William's most memorable quotes from over the years. We especially love when he talks about himself and Kate from the early years!
On Sharing Feelings
Will and Kate are all about fostering a great environment for their kids. “Catherine and I are clear that we want both George and Charlotte to grow up feeling able to talk about their emotions and feelings,” said the prince during an interview with CALMzine in 2017.
On Stability & the Media
Prince William told GQ: "I want to bring up my children in a happy, stable, secure world and that is so important to both of us as parents. I want George to grow up in a real, living environment, I don't want him growing up behind palace walls, he has to be out there. The media make it harder but I will fight for them to have a normal life."
On Being Normal
William told BBC: "I love my children the same way any father does, and I hope George loves me the same way any son does to his father, so we are very normal in that sense."
OK … now that's adorable.
On Having a Daughter
Prince William explained in 2016 on a talk show: "Having a daughter is a very different dynamic. So I'm learning … [George is] a right little rascal sometimes. He keeps me on my toes, but he's a sweet boy,”
On Kate as a Mom
According to BBC, Prince William had this to say about his wife: "It is fantastic having a lovely little family and I am so thrilled. Catherine has been doing an amazing job as a mother and I'm very proud of her." And we're sure he's still proud!
On Kate & Diana
We're pretty sure that Will is right on this one, because he thinks Kate and Princess Diana would have loved each other. The prince said: "I think she would have loved the day and I think, hopefully, she'd be very proud of us both for the day. I'm just very sad that she's never going to get a chance to meet Kate."
On Him & Harry
During a talk at the Best Man Project, Prince William said: "Losing our mother at a young age has kind of helped us sort of travel through that difficult patch together. When you’re like-minded, you go through similar things. It’s a bond and it’s something that, you know, you’ve tackled it together and come out the other side better for it."
On Being Closer With Harry After Diana
Time released a video of an honest conversation between the two royal brothers and Kate Middleton. Prince William had this to say about his brother and his late mother: "But we have been brought closer because of the circumstances. That's the thing. You know, you are uniquely bonded because of what we've been through."
On Mental Health
During the same conversation, Prince William said: "What's happened with us and what's happened with others … you have to prioritize your mental health. You have to say to yourself at some point — because it's very easy to run away from it, to walk away from it, and avoid it the whole time — someone has to take the lead and be brave enough to force that conversation."
On Laughing With Kate
During their engagement interview back in the day, Prince William said: "Obviously we both have a very fun time together, both have a very good sense of humor about things, we're down-to-earth, we take the mickey out of each other a lot, and she's got plenty of habits that make me laugh that I tease her about."
On the Early Days
"We obviously met at university, at St. Andrews we were friends for over a year first, and it just sort of blossomed from then on," The prince revealed during the engagement interview. "We just spent more time with each other, had a good giggle, had lots of fun and realized we shared the same interests and just had a really good time."
On Little George
When asked about Prince George and how he was growing up, Will had this to say in response,"He's got [Kate's] looks, thankfully."
Always cheeky, this one!
On His Cooking Skills
Also during their engagement interview, Will revealed: "When I was trying to impress Kate I was trying to cook these amazing fancy dinners and what would happen was I would burn something, something would overspill, something would catch on fire and she would be sitting in the background just trying to help, and basically taking control of the whole situation, so I was quite glad she was there at the time."
On Spending Time Outdoors
During a tour of Scandinavia, Prince William said: "One lesson that we will take home with us is that children are actively encouraged to spend time outdoors, whatever the weather." So we guess it's a good thing that Kate opened up her new garden for the kiddies!
On Having a Family
William has spoken about how life changes after kids. "I’m a lot more emotional than I used to be, weirdly," he said. "I never used to get too wound up or worried about things. But now the smallest little things, you well up a little more, you get affected by the sort of things that happen around the world or whatever a lot more, I think, as a father."
On Saving Planet Earth
William posted his concern about environmental issues on Instagram, after attending the Tusk Awards for conservation. "Right now, young people the world over are ringing that planetary alarm bell louder and with more determination than ever before," he wrote. "My generation and those following are acutely aware that we cannot simply carry on as we are. We have to move faster and more effectively to find ways to balance our demands on this planet with the nature we share it with."
On the Queen's Reign
William told Katie Couric he admired his grandmother, who became queen at age 25. "At the time, she was a woman in a man's world, stepping into what everyone thought only a man could do," he revealed. "I think she really carved her own way in that sense. And produced an incredible amount of courage to do the job and to step up to the plate. And she's not let herself or anyone down in the process."
On the Queen as Grandmother
"She's a very good listener," Prince William told Katie Couric about Queen Elizabeth. "If you ever have problems, she will listen, and she will try to help. But otherwise she lets you get on with things, and carve your own path. Your successes are your successes, and your failures are your failures. But she'll be there to help."
On Being a Country Boy
When Prince Charles becomes king, Prince William will take over managing the Duchy of Cornwall, a $1 billion-plus business run by his dad — much of which is dedicated to farming, which in part supports William and Harry's families. "The countryside is deep in my heart. I want to learn and know more about farming, but the countryside and the way of life and the best people in the countryside is what I grew up with. I’m not a London boy."
On Supporting a Child Coming Out
Asked how he would react if one of his children came out, Prince William said it would be "absolutely fine by me." He added, "I fully support whatever decision they make, but it does worry me from a parent point of view, how many barriers, hateful words, persecution, all that, and discrimination that might come."
On What Kind of Granny Diana Would Have Been
"She'd love the children to bits, but she’d be an absolute nightmare," Prince William said in the documentary Diana Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy. "She'd come and go and she'd come in probably at bath time, cause an amazing amount of scene, bubbles everywhere, bathwater all over the place and — and then leave."
On Brits Needing to Relax
”In Britain, we are nervous about our emotions, we are a bit embarrassed,” he said during a chat with a group of soccer players. “The British stiff upper lip thing, that’s great and we need to have that occasionally … but otherwise, we’ve got to relax a little bit and be able to talk about emotions. We’re not robots!”
On Going Bald
It can't be easy for someone to lose his hair in front of the whole world, but William's got a sense of humor about it. He poked fun at himself when George a reporter outside the hospital where Prince George was born asked a question about the baby's hair: "He's got way more than me, thank God."
On the Need to Wipe Out Racism
Asked about several incidents of racism against black soccer players in England and Europe, William said: "We've got to do something about it. I'm fed up with it. I'm so bored of it." He added that his mental health charity, Heads Together, will begin to tackle the issue. "We are going to start doing stuff on racism because it is affecting mental health. Not just the players, but also fans.”
On Doing Charlotte's Hair
During a visit to a community park, a dad told him he'd learned how to do his daughter's hair by watching YouTube. William talked about his own struggles styling Charlotte's hair: "Never try to do a ponytail," he said. "Nightmare!"
