NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

Prince William is ‘prone to tantrums’, claims former Kensington Palace staffer

NZ Herald
23 May, 2023 02:23 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

A former Kensington Palace staffer has spilled the tea on what the heir is really like. Photo / Getty Images

A former Kensington Palace staffer has spilled the tea on what the heir is really like. Photo / Getty Images

An ex-Kensington Palace staffer has spilled the beans on Prince William’s behaviour behind the scenes, revealing that the heir to the throne is “prone to tantrums”.

The insider told royal author Tom Quinn that Kate handles these outbursts in the same way she manages tantrums from their three children - George, 9, Charlotte, 8, and Louis, 5.

According to the UK’s Express, “Kate treats him [William] like the fourth child because he’s prone to tantrums,” the former royal staffer told Quinn.

The author of Gilded Youth: An Intimate History of Growing Up in the Royal Family went on to say that the Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage isn’t perfect, and - similarly to other couples - they get into some heated fights.

“They have terrific rows. But, where some couples have a row and throw heavy vases at each other, William and Kate throw cushions at each other. It’s always kept under control,” Quinn claims.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Quinn alleges that the popular royals strictly adhere to the late Queen Elizabeth II’s mantra of “never complain, never explain”.

Britain's William, Prince of Wales and Kate, Princess of Wales view floral tributes. Photo / AP
Britain's William, Prince of Wales and Kate, Princess of Wales view floral tributes. Photo / AP

“Because William adopts the manners and ways of behaving of his grandmother, and Kate is very good at not complaining, both of them have stuck to the thing that made Queen Elizabeth II such a remarkable monarch,” Quinn wrote.

“They very rarely complain, and when they do, it’s always in measured terms.”

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The claim comes just weeks after rumours started circling that the future King can be “difficult” to work with as a result of his “short temper”.

In Our King: Charles III: The Man And The Monarch Revealed, journalist and author Robert Jobson chatted to a senior figure within the royal household regarding William’s personality behind closed doors.

“He can be difficult,” the palace source said.

“He is a driven person and that can make him impatient,” the source added about the prince.

The insider then compared the future King to the current one, claiming Charles has more patience.

“That can make William short-tempered when dealing with Charles,” they said. “The Boss [Charles] has a temper, too, but it does not go on and on. He can get frustrated and flare up and then, in an instant, it is forgotten about. With William, it is rarely forgotten.”

Prince Harry, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge attend a Requiem Mass for Hugh van Cutsem who passed away on September 2, 2013 at Brentwood Cathedral on September 11, 2013 in Brentwood, England. Photo / Getty Images
Prince Harry, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge attend a Requiem Mass for Hugh van Cutsem who passed away on September 2, 2013 at Brentwood Cathedral on September 11, 2013 in Brentwood, England. Photo / Getty Images

What’s more, Charles was sometimes left “shocked” by both William and Harry’s short tempers, according to Jobson.

“He knew that they were both strong-willed, stubborn even; conflict would be very difficult to manage and could have a detrimental impact on the monarchy itself,” he wrote.

“Sometimes the level of belligerence between his sons, and indeed towards him, has shocked Charles.”


Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Premium
World

'Can't assume it's harmless': Experts warn on marijuana's heart risks

20 Jun 03:20 AM
Lifestyle

Study: Sleeping over 9 hours raises death risk by 34%

20 Jun 12:57 AM
Premium
Lifestyle

5 keys to a healthy diet, according to nutrition experts

20 Jun 12:00 AM

Help for those helping hardest-hit

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Premium
'Can't assume it's harmless': Experts warn on marijuana's heart risks

'Can't assume it's harmless': Experts warn on marijuana's heart risks

20 Jun 03:20 AM

The average age of patients in the study was just 38, highlighting risks for younger adults.

Study: Sleeping over 9 hours raises death risk by 34%

Study: Sleeping over 9 hours raises death risk by 34%

20 Jun 12:57 AM
Premium
5 keys to a healthy diet, according to nutrition experts

5 keys to a healthy diet, according to nutrition experts

20 Jun 12:00 AM
Beer, tonics, sauces: Why is does Japanese citrus yuzu seem to be everywhere right now?

Beer, tonics, sauces: Why is does Japanese citrus yuzu seem to be everywhere right now?

19 Jun 11:59 PM
Inside Leigh Hart’s bonkers quest to hand-deliver a SnackaChangi chip to every Kiwi
sponsored

Inside Leigh Hart’s bonkers quest to hand-deliver a SnackaChangi chip to every Kiwi

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP