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Royal Staff Was Warned Not to Mention Prince William’s 'Bald Spot' — But He Had the Best Response

Royal butler Grant Harrold recalled a funny story where he unkowingly teased William about his balding, which the Prince took in good fun.

When still in his youth and prime, Prince William, at 27, began experiencing male pattern baldness, with his hair loss becoming more noticeable by the age of 32. Despite this early thinning, the Prince of Wales has always maintained a good sense of humor about it. Commenting on the same, former royal butler Grant Harrold recalled that staff were warned not to mention William’s 'bald patch' during his early hair loss days. Harrold also shared a humorous anecdote about ribbing William on his baldness, prompting a light-hearted dressing down from the Prince.

As per InStyle, Harrold, in his new book, The Royal Butler: My Remarkable Life in Royal Service, wrote, "I said [to William] that surely the worst thing about aging was losing your hair and going bald. Kate started sniggering and William gave me a look that said, ‘Thanks for that.’" He continued, "It hadn’t occurred to me that, of course, by then he was starting to lose his hair," adding that the future King "always took any comments, intended or otherwise, in good humor."

When asked what Harrold wished everyone knew about the royal family, he stressed that they are hardworking, citing specifically King Charles, who he claims would be up even before him. "He’d go to bed after me, and he’d still be working," the butler shared. He also cited other examples of the family's good sense of humor. "Everyone over the years has talked about the issues, the problems, the bullying, or upsets, or this or that. I’m thinking, ‘What the hell? Why are they not talking about the 95 percent of the time we’re all killing ourselves laughing, we’re playing silly jokes at each other.’" 

He added, "If they did a comedy show in the royal family, it would be a hit. And that’s what I wanted to get across in the book." He also spoke about the early heartbreak William endured after he broke up with Middleton for the first time. He dished, "He became a little bit withdrawn. I didn’t see a huge amount of him. I didn’t ask him — I didn’t say anything. I just knew he wasn’t himself 100 percent." 

As for William's hair thinning, the Prince of Wales has himself made fun of his baldness multiple times during public appearances. According to PEOPLE, while meeting a well-wisher during his visit to the West Midlands on March 11, William quipped, "Look at your hair! It's fantastic. Wish I had hair like that. I know, I have not a chance." He previously also joked about his hair when launching his environmental Earthshot Prize in 2020, telling a hairstylist during a day out in 2017, "I don’t have much hair, I can’t give you much business.