Prince William had quite an unexpected reaction when a royal fan called his wife, Kate Middleton, “beautiful.”

On Thursday, 22 May, the Prince and Princess of Wales attended the official naming ceremony for the HMS Glasgow in Scotland. As the ship’s sponsor, Kate gave a brief speech and followed the christening tradition by smashing a bottle of whiskey against the ship’s hull.

The royal couple, married since 2011, were seen walking past a crowd of onlookers. At one point, someone shouted a compliment at Kate, praising her looks — and then quickly realized they should probably say something nice to Prince William too, who was right beside her.

A video circulating on social media captures a light-hearted moment between Prince William and Princess Kate. Someone off-camera is heard calling out to Kate, “You’re beautiful!”

They quickly followed up with, “You too, William!”

The royal couple shared a laugh, and William playfully responded, “You don’t have to say that. Don’t worry!” He then gently touched Kate’s arm as they walked away.

William and Kate first met as students at Scotland’s prestigious St Andrews University. They married in 2011 and later became parents to Prince George (2013), Princess Charlotte (2015), and Prince Louis (2018).

Even though she’s held her royal title for over ten years, many people still call the Princess by her maiden name, ‘Middleton’.