Why Kate Middleton Isn’t Allowed to Sign Autographs
Photo: Getty.
For the British royals, a day at work generally involves getting driven to some sort of art-center opening or military service or woodworking demonstration. When Kate or William or Harry or Charles arrives at the venue, he or she typically spends a bit of time waving at the assembled well-wishers, and posing for the group of photographers, before entering the given building or stadium or museum or what have you. We have all seen enough photographs of Kate Middleton, in a solid-colored coat, waving as she enters a building, to last us a lifetime. We’ve all read a whole lot of stories about interactions between the royals and these fans who show up to see them. “Kate told me she once tried racquetball when she was a teenager!” one of the assembled fans will later tell reporters.
But you will not, it appears, ever see Kate signing an autograph for a fan. Per The Express, none of the royals are allowed to sign anything, as “the long-standing rule remains in place for all royals because of the risk of the signature being forged.” (What an intriguing rationale! Did the Queen wake up one morning in the 70s to read in the newspaper she had, like, decreed a National Flamingo Appreciation Day, only to realize her signature had been forged by a renegade flamingo breeder? There are a lot of possibilities . . .)
What is Charles’s go-to move for declining an autograph? He reportedly says, “Sorry, they don’t allow me to do that.” Straight-forward, yet not too stern—not bad! He did once break protocol in 2010, when he signed one for a victim of a flood, writing “Charles 2010” on a piece of paper (“Charles 2010” sounds like some kind of posh operating system, doesn’t it?).
Of course, no need to completely fret. They may not be able to sign autographs, but Kate and Harry and the rest clearly feel just fine about taking selfies.
This story originally appeared on Vanity Fair.
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