Ex-Butler Says One Royal Beats Prince Harry at Pranks — and It’s Someone You’d Least Expect
Though Prince Harry holds the crown for being the funniest royal, former butler Grant Harrold believes someone else deserves that spot.
While members of the royal family may appear stoic and formal, they are, at the end of the day, human just like the rest of us. They, too, enjoy the occasional leg-pulling and light-hearted banter behind closed doors. While Prince Harry unofficially holds the crown for being the goofiest royal, former royal butler Grant Harrold believes someone else deserves that title. According to him, the late Queen Elizabeth was known for her signature wit, often joking with aides just to see their flustered reactions.
As reported by Showbiz CheatSheet, Harrold recollected a funny anecdote involving a previous encounter with the Queen. He said, "In the early days, I remember the late Queen coming out of the dining room, where we were lined up to meet her following dinner. She came up and stopped in front of me and said something inaudible." He added, "I just looked at her, and she was waiting for an answer. So I said, 'Yes, Your Majesty,' and she went, 'Very good,' and then walked off." While he felt privileged that the late monarch spoke to him, he later revealed it was all part of her plan to pull his legs.
Continuing his narration, he revealed, "I was told that what the Queen used to do, she would come up to you, and she would say something inaudible or something that didn't make sense to see how you reacted. So it was a bit of fun and innocent—it was to catch you off guard." While the former royal butler believed that she was the funniest royal, he suggested that Harry was no less funny either. He stressed, "Prince Harry was one of the biggest practical jokers. He was jumping out and scaring people and winding people up and all that kind of thing."
As for the Queen, Harrold is not the only one who has sung praises of her signature sense of humor. Royal author Katherine Dolbey recounted in her book, The Wicked Wit of Queen Elizabeth II, that the late monarch was asked why she always wore bright colors to public events. To which, she reportedly quipped, "If I wore beige, nobody would know who I am." She also managed to keep her calm during a visit to New Zealand, when protesters threw eggs at her. After the harrowing incident, she reportedly joked, "I myself prefer my New Zealand eggs for breakfast."
Unsurprisingly, this wasn't the only incident where the Queen's quirkiness was on display. Her former royal protection officer, Richard Griffin, once recalled a funny incident to Sky News involving a group of American tourists who had no idea what the Queen of England looked like. In a surprising twist, they ended up asking her if she had ever met 'The Queen.' She jokingly answered, "Well, I haven't, but Dickie here meets her regularly." After they had left, she reportedly said, "I'd love to be a fly on the wall when he shows those photographs to friends in America. Hopefully, someone tells him who I am."
