William and Kate announced their engagement in November 2010 (Image: Getty Images)
After more than 13 years of marriage, the Prince and Princess of Wales are stronger together than ever but there was a time that William had to keep a major secret from Kate – and it was huge.
The couple tied the knot in April 2011 and went on to welcome three children together, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. They announced their engagement in November 2010, and in an interview with ITV’s Tom Bradby, the newly-engaged pair shared details of a romantic Kenyan holiday during which William proposed with his late mother Princess Diana’s engagement ring.
The Prince explained at the time: “It is the place my father took my brother and me shortly after our mother died. And when deciding where best to propose to Catherine, I could think of no more fitting place than Kenya to get down on one knee.” William then revealed that he had secretly been carrying the ring, made by royal jeweller Garrard, in a backpack for a whopping three weeks before popping the question. He joked: “I knew if this thing disappeared, I’d be in a lot of trouble”.
There was huge excitement surrounding William and Kate’s wedding – and people tuned in in their millions to watch their engagement interview, the chance to hear Kate for the first time. And viewers were delighted to see the Prince stepping in to support his future wife as she faced a potentially tough question from Bradby.
During the famous interview, Kate was asked if she found it ‘intimidating’ to be following in the footsteps of the late Princess Diana, who remains a ‘massive iconic figure’ many years after her tragic death. In response, Kate stated: “Yes, I do.” At that point, William protectively stepped in, saying: “There’s no pressure though. There’s no pressure, like Kate said it is about carving your own future. No one is trying to fill my mother’s shoes, what she did was fantastic. It’s about making your own future and your own destiny and Kate will do a very good job of that.”
