Royal Secrets Unveiled: 5 Hidden Gems from Kate & William's Wedding Day
It was the event of the year — and rightfully so!
1. Kate's parents learned about their daughter's engagement before the royal family
The Prince and Princess of Wales separated and got back together twice before they announced their engagement and tied the knot in 2011. On October 20, 2010, after dating his university sweetheart for seven years, William finally proposed to Catherine at the foothills of Mount Kenya.
Both were incredibly excited to reveal the news to their families but decided to wait a couple of weeks before making it official.
Middleton regrets this decision: the day before she and Prince William made the announcement, her beloved grandfather Peter passed away. Saddened by his death, the royal fiancée revealed the news to her parents.
The Queen and other members of the royal family, along with the rest of the world, learned about the heir's engagement on the following day.
2. Kate invited her postman, the local butchers, and a pub owner to the royal wedding
The royal wedding ceremony was attended by almost two thousand guests. Among them were prime ministers, major celebrities, foreign officials, and other world royalties.
But there were ordinary people too: Prince William's fiancée also invited her family's postman Ryan Naylor, butcher shop owners Martin and Sue Fidler, and John Haley, the pub owner of The Old Boot Inn.
3. Kate wore an "old" dress to the engagement photo shoot
The royal family members normally have stylists to help them choose outfits for the most important occasions — but Kate Middleton wanted to personally decide on the outfit to wear for the official photo shoot following her engagement with Prince William.
The future Duchess of Cambridge went to a London boutique the day before the occasion and said she needed an outfit for an "important dinner." Middleton was looking for a dress to match Diana Spencer's engagement ring, but she couldn't find one at the shop. So, Catherine ended up wearing the dark blue Issa dress that was already hanging in her wardrobe.
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4. The royal photographer rehearsed shooting the wedding
Royal newlyweds must have perfect photographs taken on their special day — so royal photographer Hugo Burnand and his team settled into Buckingham Palace three days before the event and did a second-by-second stopwatch dress rehearsal of the entire day.
That's how the team knew they needed exactly 33 minutes to capture all shots — but then the monarch representatives returned to them and cut down the shooting time by four minutes. William and Kate clearly had a busy wedding day!
5. William honored his mother's memory
Elton John, a close friend of Diana Spencer, said that the Princess of Wales would have been happy to see her son and his fiancée getting married at Westminster Abbey.
The musician expressed his admiration for Prince William's strength and spirit for overcoming his tragic childhood memories and marrying his beloved Catherine in the place where his mother's funeral had been held.
Elton John said he felt very happy for the couple and was sure Diana would be happy for them too.