10 of the most awkward Royal Family moments

Not even the Royal Family are immune from some seriously awkward gaffes

Has a family ever been as photographed as the Royal Family? From their iconic portraits to effortless photos capturing their best off-duty style, the Royal Family are notoriously difficult to catch off guard.

“Whatever in love means”

Arguably one of the most awkward moments from the royals was the then Prince Charles’ toe-curling comment in front of the world’s press after announcing his engagement to Princess Diana.

Rather than being full of love and praise for his new fiancée, Charles left the room – and the world – completely bewildered with his odd choice of words.

A journalist at the engagement announcement in 1981 told the couple, “You both look very much in love,” Diana replied, “Oh, yes. Absolutely.” Charles, however, chose to say, “Whatever ‘in love’ means.”

Prince Harry acting out

Prince Harry has become something of a renegade royal, having quit ‘The Firm’ to move to California and then releasing an unprecedented tell-all memoir.

But, as it turns out, the Prince has been making things awkward for his family from the very early days.

During the Trooping the Colour parade in 1988, Harry took his mum, Princess Diana, by total surprise as he decided to stick his tongue out at the thousands of people coming to witness the spectacle outside Buckingham Palace.

One of the funniest examples of royal children struggling to behave at royal events!

Silencing the future King

If this was a few centuries ago, such a gesture to the future King of England could have you locked away in the Tower of London (or worse!).

Fortunately, things have changed and rules have relaxed, otherwise this awkward moment of Savannah Phillips (Princess Anne’s granddaughter from her son, Peter Phillips) shushing Prince George could have ended very differently.

The moment might have been a bit awkward and embarrassing for the royals, as their kids were clearly misbehaving on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, but it was endearing and funny for everybody else.

The Princess of Wales dances with a mascot

Being Kate Middleton comes with plenty of perks – from access to incredible fashion and enjoying some truly dazzling tiara moments.

However, as Princess of Wales, she sometimes finds herself forced to take part in some awkward social moments that she can’t just say no to or avoid (like many of us would choose to do).

One such awkward moment saw the Princess dancing with a giant Paddington Bear mascot in front of a packed train station in London. Not the most graceful moves from Catherine, but when your partner is a human-sized teddy bear, the blame lies with him.

A Princess acting most unroyal

Unlike her younger brother Prince Louis – notorious for stealing the show with some mischievous antics – Princess Charlotte is usually on her best behaviour.

However, the Princess of Wales (and her mum, Carole Middleton) found themselves in an awkward situation as they rushed to stop young Charlotte from sticking out her tongue at the King’s Cup Regatta.

Kids – even royal ones – will be kids.

Even the Queen can be a sore loser

Was it slightly awkward for Queen Elizabeth II to let her feelings known when her horse didn’t win at the Epsom Derby? Sure. Was it funny to see someone as iconic as Britain’s longest-reining monarch be such a sore loser? Absolutely.

During the famous derby, Her Majesty – a lifelong lover of horses and a talented racehorse breeder – had one of her horses in the race.

Apparently, the horse, Carlton House, had been an early favourite to win but only managed a third-place finish.

Charles and Camilla have their feathers ruffled

King Charles and Queen Camilla learnt the hard way that not every royal photo opportunity ends out the way they hoped.

Back in 2015, Charles and Camilla attended the Sandringham Flower Show where they met Zephyr, a bald eagle who was the mascot of the Army Air Corps.

Not quite anticipating the wingspan of such a powerful bird, Their Majesties were left with a photograph looking both terrified and awkward.

Princess Diana falls asleep

Princess Diana was given a rather unwanted nickname after she was caught dozing during an event.

Dubbed Sleeping Beauty, Diana was caught dropping off during a gala performance at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.

Touchingly, the awkward moment was later revealed to be because Princess Diana was pregnant with her first child, Prince William

Harry’s goofiness caught on camera

While Prince Harry’s goofy side is part of the reason he’s so popular – with plenty of candid photos of the Prince bringing the levity over the years – not every in-joke or private gag with your nearest and dearest translates to the wider public.

Prince Harry proved this when he joined his brother, Prince William, and mother-in-law, Queen Camilla, for Trooping the Colour in 2009.

He clearly was amusing his family with whatever joke he was making, but all the rest of the world sees is a most awkward photo of Harry.