The sad reason Prince William and Harry used to test their friends and the 'key' to keeping a bond with the royals
The high-profile brothers reportedly used a particular method to see if their friends were loyal
Emma Shacklock
In life, there are few things you can count on quite like your friends. But when everyone knows who you are from the moment you’re born, how do you make real, life-long friendships? This was what woman&home’s royal contributor Emily Andrews and Reverend Richard Coles explored on the latest episode of their podcast, Catching Up with the Royals.
Pondering how growing up in the public eye affected Prince William and Prince Harry's friendships, Emily suggested they would test their loyalty.
"I remember in the past, Harry and William feeding erroneous stories out and keeping track of what they told to whom," she claimed. "So they could track what ended up in the press and they’d cut those friends out."
"Anyone who they deemed to be disloyal would be absolutely eviscerated and cut from the social circle," she added.
Delving more into what it means to be friends with one of the brothers, Emily reflected that the Princes' friendship group is largely aristocracy. The Prince of Wales's circle of friends includes Thomas van Straubenzee, who is godfather to Princess Charlotte, and James Meade, who went to Eton with William.
Emily continued, "One of Catherine’s best friends married one of William’s best friends. But I think the key for keeping your friendship with the royals is loyalty… To the extent, I’ve got friends of friends who are friends with the royals and they will not even mention their name in front of me, just in case."
The royal expert added that being royal comes with some notable obstacles when it comes to making friends. She claimed, "You’re always going to be the most important person in the room - it’s quite hard to sustain friendships on those weird, unbalanced dynamics."
While Prince William and Prince Harry might have endured trickier dynamics with their social circles, Emily believes Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis could experience very different friendships. This is all thanks to one important decision William and Catherine have made for them.
Emily suggested that, with the three children attending the same school, "They’re perhaps mingling with different kinds of families, so maybe they’ll have different kinds of friendships."
While Lambrook, an independent prep school in Berkshire for boys and girls aged 3-13 is still, by most standards, a posh school, Emily explained that it isn’t to the same level.
This means that George, Charlotte and Louis are being educated with "the kids of doctors, lawyers, business people, maybe upper middle class”. Emily’s co-host Richard Coles put forward the idea that this upbringing is "more Middleton than Windsor".
"The Middleton way has definitely been the childhood that William and Catherine want for their children," Emily responded. "I think that it’s really important for the 21st century monarchy because I do think monarchy now more than ever has to be relevant to the people."
