Odd thing Prince William
Prince William and Prince Harry may now be separated by a deeply public rift, but their relationship was once very different. Long before their disagreements became headline news, the brothers were frequently pictured together as children, often dressed alike by their late mother, Princess Diana. According to Harry's own account, however, there was one particular aspect of growing up alongside his elder brother that William "loathed."
In his 2023 memoir, Spare, Harry said that one of the things that particularly irritated the future King was being dressed in the same clothes as his younger brother. While we may look back at the pictures of the young princes and think they look absolutely adorable, it turns out Prince William was not a fan of the matching outfits at all.
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
Harry wrote in his 2023 memoir: "Willy always hated it when anyone made the mistake of thinking us a package deal.
"He loathed it when Mummy dressed us in the same outfits. (It didn’t help that her taste in children's clothes ran to the extreme; we often looked like the twins from Alice in Wonderland.) I barely took notice.
"I didn't care about clothes, mine or anyone else's. So long as we weren't wearing kilts, with that worrisome knife in your sock and that breeze up your [expletive], I was good."
While the public found it charming, Harry noted that for William, who was older and wanted to carve out his own space, being forced to look like a pair of "twins" was frustrating.
The princes famously wore matching denim-on-denim outfits during their royal visit to Canada on October 23, 1991. The brothers sported coordinated blue jeans and matching denim shirts after touring the Canadian frigate HMCS Ottawa in Toronto.
The issue did not end with childhood outfits. William and Harry eventually attended the same school, Eton College, although William had been there first.
Harry wrote: "For Willy, it was pure agony to wear the same blazer, the same tight shorts, as me. And now, to attend the same school was pure murder."
Harry came to Eton College just a year after his mother's death. William asked him to pretend they did not know each other, Harry claimed in the book.
He wrote: "Willy told me to pretend I didn’t know him. You don’t know me, Harold. And I don’t know you.
"For the last two years, he explained, Eton had been his sanctuary. No kid brother tagging along, pestering him with questions, pushing up on his social circle. He was forging his own life, and he wasn’t willing to give that up."