Politics
‘Leader’ Kate Middleton flatters Prince William to ‘boost his confidence’ in YouTube video, says body language expert
PRINCE William and Kate Middleton surprised us all by launching their own YouTube channel with a cute montage of the pair together over the years.
The 25-second long clip saw the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge laughing and joking with one another, as they settled in together in front of the camera.
The Cambridges are ‘relaxed and playful’ in their first YouTube video[/caption]
In between footage of them working events and making Royal appearances, William and Kate were seen in cute outtakes, with body language expert Judi James revealing how it shows the dynamics of their relationship.
She claims that Kate is the natural “leader” out of the two and reveals how the video begins to show their more playful side to the public.
Speaking to Fabulous Digital, Judi explains: “The cute ‘outtake’ moments in this upbeat royal video might not be quite as spontaneous as they seem but they do still give us a very revealing glimpse of the dynamics of William and Kate’s relationship with each other and with their public.
“It has taken William a long time to learn to trust the media and the public but here we can see him relaxing and happy to share a couple of unscripted moments with his wife.”
It included cute outtakes of William and Kate on camera[/caption]
The montage included footage of the pair attending events over the years[/caption]
The video begins with William teasing Kate to “be careful” of what she says now the pair are on camera.
“There were previously clues he might have been a little pompous and that he took himself a little too seriously. Now we can see a Prince happy to relax and act playful in front of the camera, showing a self-effacing sense of humour,” Judi says.
“We can also see Kate in the role of subtle lead and even coach when it comes to this more naturalistic approach to the camera. Sitting upright and with her eye contact aimed confidently at the camera at the start, Kate shows the perfect blend of body language signals to flatter her husband and boost his media confidence.”
Judi says that Kate naturally is the “leader” of the two and William is “comfortable” with that[/caption]
Kate boosts William’s confidence despite him seeming wary in front of a close-lens[/caption]
She continues: “Her posture is self-diminished and her hands are clasped in her lap, allowing him to feel more powerful and to respond by adopting a more alpha leg splay and forward slump.
“There is a hint of William’s old wariness as he pokes a finger at the guys behind the camera and warns Kate to ‘be careful what you say’ but Kate’s squealing ‘I know!’ converts the moment into something more playful and fun.”
For Judi, Kate is naturally the one to take the lead – something she claims William is more than “comfortable” with.
“Kate’s coaching trait is glimpsed when we see her turn to her husband to mention about ‘rolling his ‘r’s’ during their St Patrick’s Day message. She does this using a slightly firmer approach and it is interesting how he adopts a slightly more submissive pose as he turns to her, suggesting he is not only used to taking her advice but also comfortable with it,” Judi explains.
Judi says the social media video allows the couple to banter directly with the public[/caption]
“Their power-share on visits is illustrated by their choice of clips. We mainly see Kate using active gesticulation and possibly leading when meeting the public or hosts on a visit, while William emphasises his macho credentials during clips like the one of his helicopter works.”
She adds: “There is a strongly-emerging message about the changing state of the Cambridge’s relationship with the public here, too, though.
“Through the close-up lens of social media and via their relaxing attitude to revealing their real selves behind the more formal royal image, Kate and William are creating a very direct and friendly relationship with the public.
“Their banter and their playful side that we could only watch from a remote distance before now seems to include us as well.”
Judi concludes: “Their popularity has been on a sharp increase and videos like this one will tend to make the feelings of liking and friendship feel mutual.”
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In more Royal Family news, the Queen, and William and Kate, were recently seen wishing Harry’s son Archie happy birthday as he turned two.
And we took a look inside the glamorous life of William and Harry’s forgotten step-sister Laura Lopes who’s a regular at Royal events.