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After dating for several years, Prince William and the Princess of Wales (formerly known as Kate Middleton) announced their engagement on Nov. 16, 2010. But the prince actually popped the question weeks earlier when the two were vacationing in Africa.

However, they had to keep things under wraps for a while until they got home, told the people they needed, and planned for an official announcement with a joint interview. They even kept things a secret from some of their closest friends until the Palace green-lighted the announcement.

Now, someone who used to work for the royals is revealing that the staff knew nothing about the engagement either until just before it was announced to the media, saying Will and Kate had great “poker faces.”

Grant Harrold was King Charles’ butler for seven years. While working for the monarch, Harrold’s duties also included valet, housekeeper, house manager, and driver. He looked after Prince William, Catherine, and Prince Harry as well whenever they stayed at Highgrove House.

Since leaving the royal household, Harrold has become one of the U.K.’s leading etiquette experts. In 2025, he published his first book, The Royal Butler, which became an Amazon bestseller. He regularly appears on TV offering royal commentary on both current and historic news stories.

Speaking on behalf of Heart Bingo Online, “At Highgrove, we knew nothing about the engagement. There was a lot of gossip going on behind closed doors, and we all hoped an announcement would happen soon. They had been dating for so many years. There was a joke that they would have their faces on the tea towel soon. I think we got notified just before it got announced, and it was so exciting.” 

Harrold continued, “I remember they came back from their trip to Kenya, and they kept it a secret until the actual announcement. They were very good at their poker faces. It wasn’t an easy thing to do as we were all in the same royal household, but they pulled it off well. 

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“I’m sure Catherine was nervous, but she was very professional. She had the training and knew how to act and behave like a true royal. But they were super excited. After the announcement, we all congratulated them both. Of course, we were all so happy about it.”  

The former royal butler also said that William would be exhausted sometimes with all the late-night rehearsals, recalling, “I remember Prince William was tired because he had a lot of late-night wedding rehearsals. They were in London so they had to know who was doing what. It was really important so they knew it was all right on the day.

“I think Catherine did join sometimes. The king just carried on as normal. They had a whole team looking after William and Kate. I’m sure they kept him updated, but I don’t think he really got involved much.”

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