Prince George’s appearance at the recent royal wedding of his uncle Prince Harry and new aunt Meghan Markle was a little sad. Despite it being our first glimpse of the 4-year-old in trousers (not shorts!), it emphasized just how shy the youngster has become, hiding behind his father Prince William‘s legs during the royal wave, allowing little sister Princess Charlotte to steal the show with her enthusiastic wave.
We were pleasantly surprised, then, when the official royal wedding portraits showed George beaming with a large toothy grin. Now, royal photographer Alexi Lubomirski (and a prince himself) has revealed just how he wrangled the beaming smile out of our favorite heir-to-the-throne, and it’s quite simple.
“[The page boys and bridesmaids] were being bribed with one Smartie here, one Smartie there,” explained Lubomirski to Reuters. “So as soon as the kids came onto the set, I immediately just shouted out, ‘Who likes Smarties?’ and then everybody, hands up, smiles, even some adults put their hands up. Parents were trying to wrangle their children, other uncles and aunts were talking to their nephews and nieces. It was a family, that was essentially what it is.”
It might just be that the tiny tot is just a bit camera-shy because his behavior inside the royal wedding was reportedly nothing short of regal. According to royal correspondents, the young prince tried to comfort a younger bridesmaid Zalie Warren when she began to cry before the procession. Meanwhile, an eagle-eyed guest also spotted candy being doled out by royal nanny Maria Teresa Borrallo to bribe a fidgety flower girl, while Princess Charlotte reportedly also tried to keep her in line saying, “No you can’t go yet. We have to wait until we are asked.” Those royal kids are so adorable. We can’t wait to see what they do next.
This article originally appeared on Grazia.
