Prince William Admits His Relationship With Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip Was “Quite Formal” Until He Grew Up: “We Had a Lot of Laughs”

Prince William was fortunate to have his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, and grandfather, Prince Philip, around until their late nineties, with the Duke of Edinburgh living until age 99 and Elizabeth dying at the age of 96 in 2022. Speaking to Eugene Levy in a special royal-themed episode of The Reluctant Traveler on Apple TV+, the 43-year-old Prince of Wales admitted that his relationship with his grandparents was "good," but that it became much better when he reached adulthood.

While taking Levy on a tour of Windsor Castle, William pointed out Eton College from a window, telling the actor how he used to visit his grandmother for "the best teas" when he was a student. "And you had a great relationship?" Levy asked. "Yeah, I had a good relationship," William said, pointing out his grandparents "were of a different generation."

"I think when we were younger it was harder to have that very close relationship, because it was quite formal," he admitted. "But as they got older and I got older, it got warmer and warmer." The Prince of Wales continued, "I definitely think my relationship was best with my grandparents when they were more in their sort of eighties," explaining "they sort of relaxed a little bit."

Prince William added that the late Duke of Edinburgh—who was known for his off-color comments at times—was "incredibly amusing, sometimes not deliberately." The Prince of Wales added, "we had a lot of laughs, and he had a great sense of humor. As did my grandmother as well, actually."

Although he didn't bring up the late Queen's incredible talent at mimicry, William said there was "always warmness, always laughter, always a family feel" but "you had to be careful about your timing" when making jokes with the late Queen and Prince Philip.

Speaking about his grandmother's absence, William said, "For me, Windsor is her. She loved it here. She spent most of her time here."

During another scene from the episode, which premieres on October 3, Prince William takes his dog, Orla, for a walk with Levy through Windsor Great Park. They also visit a Windsor pub with Orla in tow, during which the Prince of Wales opened up about The King and Princess Kate both being diagnosed with cancer in 2024.

"I'd say 2024 was the hardest year I've ever had," he said, describing how it was difficult "trying to sort of balance protecting the children, Catherine, my father needs a bit of protection, but he’s, you know, he’s old enough to do that himself."

William added that he wanted his kids Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7, to feel "protected" and like they have "space to process a lot of the stuff that’s gone on last year, and that was tricky trying to do that and keep doing the job."

Speaking about his family's journey over the past year, William shared, "You know, life is sent to test us as well, and being able to overcome that is what makes us who we are."