Prince George's Godfather Shares a Rare Insight Into His Relationship With "Charming" Future King
Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton says he's "a better godfather when it comes time to have a bit of fun."
It was finally announced that Prince George will be heading to Eton College in September, and as the soon-to-be teenager grows up, he has one trusted friend of the Royal Family (and Old Etonian) in his corner. Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton worked as the principal private secretary to Prince William and Prince Harry from 2005 to 2013, and he was so beloved by the Prince and Princess of Wales that he was named as one of Prince George’s godparents. In a new interview with the Times, Lowther-Pinkerton shared some memories of his time with the royals—and one special assignment with Prince George.
Although he retired from royal service ahead of George’s July 2013 birth, Lowther-Pinkerton said he was “hauled out of retirement to be the herder of cats” for King Charles’s 2023 coronation.
The cats in question? Prince George and his fellow coronation pages, including Queen Camilla’s twin grandsons, Gus and Louis Lopes, her eldest grandson, Freddy Parker Bowles, and her great nephew, Arthur Elliot, among family friends and cousins of The King.
Prince George (third from right) and his fellow coronation pages enjoyed the spectacle on the Buckingham Palace balcony in May 2023.
Prince William and Prince Harry joined Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton (far right) and Rupert Gavin, Chairman of Historic Royal Palaces, at the 2021 unveiling of Princess Diana's statue in the Kensington Palace gardens.
“We spent a week together,” Lowther-Pinkerton, known as "JLP" to the royals, told the outlet. “We had such fun because we had to do our business, but then we went and looked at the Imperial War Museum. They were charming boys, all of them, really charming. So well behaved, totally different from what I was like, you know. I’ve been sort of a scallywag.”
The former royal aide and SAS soldier was tasked with everything from managing the military careers of both Prince William and Prince Harry to helping plan William and Kate's 2011 wedding. As a trusted friend to the Royal Family, he didn't have much to say when asked about the rift between the brothers.
“Do you know what?” he said. “I think I’d better steer clear of that Harry issue.” However, Lowther-Pinkerton added, “What I would say is that I was and am very fond of him. He has huge redeeming features and I’m a perennial optimist.”
The Princess of Wales reunited with Lowther-Pinkerton at an event in September 2025.
Prince William and Lowther-Pinkerton take on a sailing challenge during a 2010 trip to New Zealand.
Now that George is about to turn 13, Lowther-Pinkerton says he's “going to be a better godfather.”
“It sounds awful,” Lowther-Pinkerton shared. “But I’m a better godfather when it comes time to have a bit of fun. I’ve got other godchildren and I have huge fun with them when they reach a certain point, so hopefully that’ll be the time when JLP comes out of the chrysalis.”
