Today is the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s tenth anniversary, and as such, we’ve been celebrating Keen Anniversary Week. There have been dozens of embiggening stories from an increasingly desperate-looking Middleton press machine, and the whole vibe has been very odd. I can’t tell if certain British royal reporters are actually being quite shady about the Keens. We’ve also been gifted some cloying stories about the Cambridges’ 2011 wedding. There’s really no news there, it’s just flogging a dead horse. The stories are a lot like this one, which is People Mag’s exclusive interview with a harpist who played at the Cambridges’ wedding. She makes William sound like the kind of bore who laughs hysterically at his own dumb jokes.
Prince William snuck in a lighthearted joke about his younger brother Prince Harry during his speech at his wedding reception 10 years ago on April 29, 2011.
As he thanked those who’d helped make the day he wed Kate Middleton so special, he referred to harpist Claire Jones, who was among the entertainers at the Buckingham Palace afternoon reception.
“He made a lovely little remark about me,” Jones tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “The first thing he said to me was, ‘Did you hear what I said in my speech?’ I said I did, but I asked him to remind me because I hadn’t heard it all. He said, ‘Thank goodness Claire turned up to play the harp because otherwise, we’d have to get my brother to play it instead.”
“He thought that was hilarious,” she added. “I thought it was quite funny he said that. He was very accommodating and warm. I wished them well, and I said I hoped they would have a happy and joyful life together.”
Earlier in the day, as William and Kate said their vows in front of the world at Westminster Abbey, Jones watched the ceremony on TV with some of the palace staffers who were preparing for the reception. Then, after the guests and the royal family arrived back from the service, she provided the musical entertainment.
“The first member of the royal family to thank me was Prince Harry,” Jones adds. “He was really, really down-to-earth, very friendly and easy to talk to. Straight away he said, ‘Thank you for being here and taking the time to play. It sounds wonderful.’ “
So Harry came up to her and thanked her for being there and for playing so beautifully at his brother’s wedding. And when William came up to her, he asked her if she heard his joke, then repeated his joke, then laughed hysterically at his own joke. So… that’s it in a nutshell. William really is that dull.
Enjoy the photos of the 2011 wedding.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Avalon Red.
Because that’s Harry – the butt of all your jokes, and the one who always cleaned up all your messes for you. Yup. Sounds about right.
Maybe I’m being stupid in my old age, but I don’t get why William’s “joke” is funny at all. Is it in reference to some lack of skill re Harry in the playing of a musical instrument? And is that supposed to LOL hilarious to everyone? Why did the harpist find it funny as well? I am clueless here.
As to the wedding photos, I enjoy seeing them again but am reminded that Kate’s wedding dress just didn’t do anything for me – it was bland and boring. I remember almost gasping out loud at Pippa’s stunningly beautiful, form-fitting gown. She really looked amazing.
The Cambridges looked genuinely happy at their wedding 10 years ago. What a difference a decade has made.
Maybe he thinks the very idea of a male playing a “feminine” instrument like the harp is inherently funny?
Now we know why the UK is freaked that Harry is gone and desperately need him back. He is the mature one.
That wedding dress is still the most beautiful of all. And Harry was always and still is the most charming and adorable prince of all.
It’s an attempt to copy Grace Kelly’s iconic look and personally, I don’t think Grace Kelly will ever be topped and certainly not if you’re just trying to be a copycat. Now Carolyn Bessette looked phenomenal but very different and very herself.
Carolyn Bessette was freaking gorgeous.
Eh, the only thing is has in common with Grace Kelly’s wedding dress is the high-necked long-sleeved lace-covered torso. So, maybe a third of the total dress? The rest is entirely different.
Well, if you look at Kate’s and Grace Kelly’s dresses side by side, even their veils are the same length in front, the tiaras are very similar, the lace sleeves and bodice are undeniably the same (and that’s the core of Grace’s look), and the skirts are similar. Not identical of course, but close enough that Mark Badgley and Tim Gunn and others in the news reports remarked on it that day and since. Differences: Kate had a deep V-neck whereas Grace was literally buttoned up (so unnecessary when you’re already barely covered in lace); Grace wore a sash (?) to show off her waist (her TINY waist); and Kate added a lengthy train. Oh and their hair and eyeliner or lack thereof was different (I really don’t like how they back-combed or whatever a mound of Kate’s hair on top of her head but that’s probably subjective). All in all it’s a pretty obvious “tribute” or whatever we want to call it. Grace looked SO beautiful.
The boobs on her wedding dress were soooo distracting. So pointy.
Cone boobs is all I see. And her reception dress was cringe. The makeup was so overdone, too. I remember the moment the dress was revealed after so much build-up and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Meh. Add to that all the smirking and acting like it was just something they had to do.
I loved her wedding dress and still do for the most part, but once someone pointed out the cone boobs I can’t unsee them.
It’s also bothering me in their formal portrait that the pleats of the dress aren’t straight.
It doesn’t beat the simple lines of CP Mette-Marit’s wedding dress, which honestly looked like it was made of spider-silk and woven by elves. CP Mary’s wedding gown is also gorgeous.
I looked up CP Mette-Marit’s wedding dress-that is a really lovely dress. Also came across a video of their wedding. Kind of liked them walking each other down the aisle before the ceremony. CP Haakon had no troubles smiling or sneaking glances at her throughout.
One commenter knowledgeable about fashion pointed out that it was unusual to have the both narrow and deep neckline. Usually it would be a wider curve to show off more chest or it would be high and modest, like Grace Kelly’s.
(As Miss Manners has said “the overtly sexy dress is, on a bride, redundant” 🙂)
That beautiful wedding dress and the blessed addition of sleeves back into wedding attire remains the most interesting thing Kate ever did
I really loved dress at the time. I liked the long lace sleeves and the shape of the skirt but also yeah now I see the cone boobs and feel like that area could have been done better in hindsight. It’s pretty subjective though. Some peeps are just no to lace. I like it when done well.
Why am I not surprised that William was making jokes about his brother in his wedding speech?! William is such a boorish jackass.
And, as per usual, Harry makes a better impression on a person than FFK The Other Brother. I am so glad Meghan and Harry escaped that Sunken Place.
Sunken Palace?
Sunken Place – its a Get Out reference.
I was making a bad joke Becks1. Much like William here. Ew, he and I have something in common.
William makes an inane joke at the expensive of Harry, and at the end of it, Harry is the gallant first person to offer his appreciation for her art. Perfect summation of who they are.
She asked him to remind her, so it’s not like he repeated the joke unprompted.
There’s a lot to criticize William for, but this isn’t it.
Lol. He asked if she heard it. The fact that he thought it was funny enough to bear repeating is ridiculous.
HE asked HER if she remembered HIS joke. Pathetic, needing the approval/admiration/fawning for what passes as William’s wit.
I’m surprised William hasn’t ended up with a broken arm for trying to pat himself on the back all the time.
William’s an egomaniac.
The first comment he made to her was about his dumb joke at Harry expense.
Will could not even thank and congratulate her with bringing down Harry.
First, he asked her if she had heard his joke. I don’t think she did, but didn’t want to seem rude and tell him that, so she asked him to remind her what he said. She was probably just being tactful, not eagerly waiting to hear it again.
There is something so wrong in this marriage. Something is going on, probably beyond rose bush gardening. In almost every story about this “incredible” couple and their “amazing love story” Harry and/or Meghan have to be brought into it. They can’t stand on their own, even in stories ABOUT them!
Perhaps there’s context missing, but I don’t get the joke? I guess I get that it’s at the expense of Harry, but it’s just not funny.
Which brings about this question: Is it actually a joke or the result of a guy who’s been told he’s hilarious and awesome his whole life, but really doesn’t understand humor at all. And also has an axe he needs to continuously grind.
Isn’t it telling that the joke is about Harry having to fix any and every problem
Yes.
Ok, this take makes more sense to me. If true, it means he’s calling his brother a bit of a Renaissance man, and it seems less cruel-natured, but only slightly. Still, poor delivery, and weird.
I tried reading it again, but I missed the joke as well. Is this the dry humor that Brits are so famous for? Because I like your comedies, but this joke ain’t it.
DING! DING! DING! WE HAVE A WINNER!
This is the naked Emperor, who expects all far and wide, to see his “beautiful clothes spun from gold”.
It’s not a joke unless you’re a passive-aggressive cipher who belittles your younger brother who loves you dearly in an attempt to make yourself feel like you have actual worth. Then, it’s a joke, and you find it hilarious.
This was exactly my take on it. Thank you for stating that so clearly.
Seriously. If Harry maybe was an amateur harpist, I guess it might be funny, but as far as we know, he’s not. I mean, I’m pretty sure he is definitely not. So it’s just cringe-y.
I kind of need the two SNL actors who do the William And Harry Feud bits to come do a post-Sussexit one. As I recall they haven’t done one since the “Archie’s Baby Shower” sketch. I mean, if there was ever a time, this is it. I bet Harry just wouldn’t watch or care, and William would find out and be incandescent, which is fine with me.
It isn’t funny.
Sounds like William’s one of those jackass bullies who thinks humour has to have a victim.
That joke wasn’t worth a repetition. It’s not particularly funny. I wonder what other zingers he included, targeted at both Harry and Kate no doubt.
I am really thankful that her wedding dress brought sleeves back to wedding dresses in general, even if they were mostly lace (which, ugh. but that’s just me). I absolutely hated that you basically never saw anything but the same strapless sweetheart neckline mermaid dress before this. I can’t even express enough how much I hated how all-pervasive that style was.
I think her dress was beautiful.
I got married in 2010, and definitely had the sweetheart neckline/strapless/mermaid dress. Was it on trend? Yes. Did i absolutely love it (and still love it)? also yes. I tried on a bunch of dresses in a lot of different styles, and that’s the one that made me feel the most beautiful at that time.
didn’t mean to offend people who genuinely like that style, I just desperately missed sleeves.
I got married in the 1990s and I really kind of hated my options, at least the ones that were in my budget. They were either late-80s-hangover puffy and elaborate and kind of tacky, or severe Calvin Klein minimalist and boring, like simple black dresses except in white. None of them felt romantic or special or classy to me. So, I just wore my sister’s dress from four years earlier, which as it turns out looked a lot like Kate’s dress. I used the money I saved for something else, I think to have all our hair and makeup done and maybe some extra flowers. We sewed a few tiny rosettes on the shoulders to make it look just a little different, and as I got married in the winter in NY, it was perfect.
I got married in 1995 and felt super lucky to quickly find a simple but pretty dress that I loved that cost $100 (on Michigan Ave in Chicago, even). As I went to purchase it, the person at the cash register said something about it being a lovely bridesmaid option. I felt deflated (I was 24 without a lot of self-confidence), but I still think it was the perfect dress for me!
Another person saying how nice Harry is and as usual William is making some stupid joke about Harry. I wonder how Meghan felt about William always making mean jokes about Harry.
Stories like this seem a bit odd but overall innocuous on their own, but when you start putting them all together, plus all the RRs repeating that William *needs* Harry for his reign…well, you really start to get an idea of how unpleasant William really is.
Unpleasant is putting it nicely. Will is a jackass.
Too bad the Rota rats treated Harry and Meghan like crap. Maybe if there was some fair balanced reporting they would still be around..
yup, jackass is a perfect word for him
Not only is it another example of using Harry as the butt of his jokes always, this just proves William is that creepy guy in the room who won’t stop repeating or explaining a joke until you laugh frightened and run away.
In several documentaries (before Meghan), William ALWAYS makes at least one “joke” that is basically putting down Harry. It is a consistent pattern with William – it is very passive-aggressive and I think Harry went along with it for far too long.
I’ve said it before but the issue is that William does not have the charm and charisma to “pull” these jokes off. If he told me the joke I would have done a few awkward laughs and that’s it but I definitely would not be genuinely laughing.
And I really do like Kate’s dress. It’s been 10 years and it still holds up for me. Still not a fan of the makeup and she really should have stuck to the makeup artist.
Not sure that can be classified as a joke. But then bullies usually claim they were just joking.
The lady was just thrilled he knew her name.
Sounds like both of them were flirting with her. How uncomfortable.
candy, do you mean that when Harry thanked her you think he was flirting? I don’t see that at all. What part of the thank you do you think bordered on flirting?
Sounded more like good manners than flirting?
Thanking someone for doing good work is not “flirting.” What a strange idea.
I don’t think Will was flirting either, just being a boor.
uh huh sure, and they just both went out of their way to chat up the harpist, in a room with over 300 people at a wedding with all their family and friends, foreign dignitaries and celebrities. To quote Joan Holloway, I bet she’s not ugly.
She doesn’t say when these conversations took place. It could have been after the reception was over and there were no guests, otherwise they would be disturbing her performance. They probably thanked other workers too. And it sounds as if other members of the family must have spoken to her also. Anyway, Harry was single, so big deal if he flirted with anybody. Will was just married so big eww if he was flirting.
Now that Harry is not around, who will he use as the butt of his mean spirited jokes..?
Staff, father, wife, and eventually his children. He won’t be able to help himself.
Anyone he can get away with, but he’ll particularly pick out one child to bully most. That’s how people like him roll.
Omg worst story that is not a story ever.. lol🤦🏼♀️
That little girl on the left in the third picture can see the future.
OMG, yes!
This story reminds me of how Nicholas Hoult played Peter III or Russia in “The Great”…only I thought his performance was so over the top it couldn’t possibly be realistic. The cringe!!
That’s EXACTLY what I was thinking of!
King William the Douche at your service. And I guess he’s always had that weird, clenched teeth smile but I never really noticed it before.
Sure looks are not a reflection of character (although unpleasantness inside often does seep out), but having seen what happened after it’s a good thing they didn’t wait a lot longer to get married. Retouching aside we know what they look like now and it’s not the young/glamorous/you dream to be them couple you see presented here.
I am so sick of this stupid jackass making fun of Harry and putting him down. What A Jerk.
Why is this even a story??? Give me a break. Insufferable, pompous bore lamely makes a “funny” at his brother’s expense, news at 11 (and really, THIS is the random obscure memory you decide to publish about their wedding?). They really can’t do or say anything without dragging the Sussexes into it for even a tiny bit of interest.
It also shows how “me” oriented Wills is.
If I was a musician occasionally hired by the Royal Family, and if I’d met William and found him to be a boor and a bully, and if I’d met Harry and found him to be gracious and kind, but didn’t want to directly say any of that for fear of making myself unemployable…this is EXACTLY the story that I would share with the press.
Bingo!
Yes, Beana! Claire Jones was the Official Harpist of the Prince of Wales for four years and present at a number of offical events. She’s probably seen and heard more that she can ever share. I can easily see William making what he would consider colorful “jokes” and comments then trying to pass it off as just kidding. He’s an @ss in all ways.
That’s not a joke but then again he lacks a sense of humor. Also not even on his wedding day except the expected kiss was he interested in touching her. It’s like two strangers fulfilling a contract
I don’t get the “joke.” And it sounds like Will’s been completely obsessed with Harry for a long time.
I don’t understand Williams obsession with Harry. There is an incestous undertone to the reports that I don’t like at all. Especially Dan wotteen reports. Not sure if it is because he is gay or what but it reads as blackmail. The fact that he has not issued a denial about those stories is baffling. I really am beginning to think something sinister happened between Harry and William. Idk what to think.
Look, they have 3 kids together. They obviously got along well enough to produce 3 kids.
They were together for years before they married hence “waity katie”.
Not everybody is comfy with PDA, I don’t understand the comment that even on their wedding day he could hardly stand to touch her. What?
Those enormous and over produced weddings are the BRF last card to play to keep The Firm going. What was William supposed to do, stand with her wrapped around him like a Kardashian? Silly comment.
He barely even LOOKS at her, though, and when he does, he looks pained or embarrassed. They rarely seem comfortable together, and couples who have been together as long as them generally have a comfort, ease, and communication with each other that just naturally occurs over time and intimacy. These two simply do not have that. It’s not about PDA, it’s about not even seeming natural together that just looks…off.
And as for the 3 kids, well. I won’t be crude, but throughout history, royal families have proven that heirs can be produced by couples who don’t particularly like each other. William and Harry were.
They hopefully get along okay but when you compare how H&M and Eugenie & Jack looked at each other at their weddings, K&W’s looked more cold.
Putting his arm around her wouldn’t make William a Kardashian! Do you hear yourself?
William appreciates Kate periodically in his own self-absorbed and high-maintenance way and that can be a type of love.
Plot twist: Harry is an amazing harpist (in my dreams)
As usual, jokes on you, Bullyiam!