There are some things people simply never forget. Take, for instance, where they were the day All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) came out (aka a universal Swiftie ~moment~ lol). Or, for that matter, pretty much the entire experience of watching Prince William and Kate Middleton get married. And though I’d love to get into the Taylor Swift of it all—especially on the heels of her truly iconic Eras Tour—, today we’re here to talk about the royals’ April 2011 ceremony, which was watched all over the world and is still making headlines for the most 🥺 reasons.
Recently, a clip of the Prince and Princess of Wales’ second kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on their wedding day has taken TikTok by storm, and I don’t really foresee myself recovering anytime soon. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
The adorable snippet, which was shared by the account @royalfancams, has been viewed over 6.5 million times and liked by approximately 850,000 people as of this story’s publication—and it’s easy to see why! The vid showcases one of the couple’s tender exchanges after Kate walked down the aisle in her forever-memorable Alexander McQueen gown and the two proceeded to take their places on Buckingham Palace’s famous balcony.
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The footage begins after the then-newly minted Duke and Duchess of Cambridge—titles that were granted to them by the late Queen Elizabeth—shared their first public kiss as husband and wife. The massive crowd, which is said to have been comprised of close to a million spectators, erupts in cheers and requests more from the couple. Responding to the audience’s pleas, Wills asks Kate, “Shall we do one more?” prompting them to kiss yet again.
Mood because these two truly know how to give the people what they want:
The sweet moment clearly does the trick, given that the well-wishers go wild and Kate even giggles. Since then, the second kiss has become one of the most-loved royal wedding moments of all time and synonymous with the couple’s nuptials. Plus it forever linked William and Kate to the prince’s parents, Princess Diana and King Charles, who, during their own July 1981 wedding, locked lips on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in a move that “broke with tradition” at the time since British royals typically refrained from kissing during their public marriage services.
ABC reported on the notable moment back in 2011 and said, “Unlike most wedding ceremonies in the United States where the bride and groom kiss at the altar, royal newlyweds abstain from kissing during the service. Even outside the church, the kiss had long been viewed as an intimate and private moment until Prince William’s parents Charles and Diana.”
Assistant news editor
Gretty Garcia is the assistant news editor at Cosmopolitan, where she covers all things news, entertainment, and pop culture. Before joining Cosmo, Gretty was a social strategist for Mrs. Dow Jones and a features and special projects editor at Editorialist. She holds an MS from the Columbia Journalism School and studied art history at Harvard College.
