The Prince and Princess of Wales returned to the red carpet for the 2023 BAFTAs, and a body language expert broke down the moments that they shared at the event.
Their trip to the awards show marked their first time at the BAFTAs since before the pandemic. It also was Princess Kate’s first since becoming the Princess of Wales, a title she inherited after her father-in-law ascended the throne.
One moment they shared on the red carpet has gone viral after Vogue caught it on camera. In the brief clip, the princess appeared to tap her husband on the butt to get his attention.
Body language expert Judi James told The Sun that “Kate and William do look much less inhibited with their PDAs now they have moved up the royal pecking order.”
“They used more eye contact than usual and their touch rituals had increased to create a suggestion of flirting,” Judi said.
She added that “Last night’s bottom pat from Kate also showed where some of the power behind the scenes might lie.”
She said that their behavior suggested they were “totally relaxed and openly excited to be doing full glam on the red carpet.”
The expert also wondered if they were making a statement about Prince Harry‘s comments about the royal family’s expectation that wives “fit into the mold.”
“This seems to be Kate showing she should not be fitted into any mold, with her Hollywood-style glamour and her very cheeky gesture to her husband,” she mused.
Breaking down that moment, in particular, Judi said that it appeared to follow an attempt to hold Prince William’s hand.
“William didn’t respond though, leaning to chat instead, and so Kate’s small pat or tap on the bum looked part-sexy, part playful reprimand for missing her non-verbal cue,” she claimed.
Judi also noted highlighted the prince’s smile, which she described as “very toothy” and evidence of “exactly how delighted he is to be on this upmarket version of a date night with his beautiful wife.”
“William is sporting a ‘cocked thumb,’ a classic male body language signal suggesting intense pleasure,” she added about the Prince of Wales.
