Archive footage showing a competitive Prince William and Kate Middleton going head-to-head in a pretzel-making competition during a 2017 tour of Germany has gone viral. The clip has received over 2 million views on TikTok this week.
The royal couple are known for taking competitions on official engagements seriously. William and Kate have participated in sailing races, spin-cycle sprints, relays and, on rare occasions, baking challenges.
The couple's competitive moments have been the subject of a number of social-media videos shared by royal fans. The latest shows edited clips from their three-day visit to Germany in July 2017.
At the request of Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office, William and Kate made the trip with their two children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. The couple's third child, Prince Louis, would not be born until 2018.
Uploaded to TikTok by user, l0velycatherine, the viral video shows William attempting to form a perfect pretzel shape from traditional dough made by a group of chefs in the southern German town of Heidelberg.
After William is seen making a number of failed attempts, the TikTok footage then shows Kate's effort, which she appears to pull off with ease.
Captioned "Catherine be like: Easy peasy," the video has been viewed over 2.3 million times in 72 hours and received more than 190,000 likes and 110 comments.
@l0velycatherine Catherine be like: easy peasy 😌 | #princewilliam #princesskate #princesscatherine #katemiddleton #fyp ♬ vibe for this year - joseph fagundes
Many TikTok users have praised the couple and, in particular, Kate's apparent skill.
"I would be William," posted one commenter. "How does Catherine do it? She is magical."
"Hahaha anyone notices the chefs reaction in the end?" wrote another. "He's like 'Well that's how you do it,' love it."
A further user added: "Haha Kate's a natural and she and William are so competitive he won't mind she beat him though."
The couple's trip to Germany with their children was the second stop of their tour after they first visited Poland and met with President Andrzej Duda.
William returned to Poland in March 2023 where he met with Duda after spending time with British and Polish troops involved in the ongoing war in Ukraine.
A Kensington Palace spokesperson said, per U.K. newspaper The Daily Telegraph, that the prince's discussion with Duda was "warm and friendly, and predominately focussed on the ongoing conflict with the war in Ukraine, particularly its impact on Polish society."
The spokesperson added that the prince said that he was "very much looking forward" to seeing the president and first lady at the coronation of King Charles in May and that: "He also thanked him for attending the late Queen's funeral."
William and Kate will celebrate their 12th wedding anniversary at the end of April. Throughout their public lives together, the couple have relished the chance to light-heartedly compete with one another.
In March, Kate won a cycling sprint race against her husband on a visit to Wales where she was presented with a small golden trophy for her effort. It came after the prince won a sailing race during the couple's tour of the Bahamas in March 2022.
At a banquet after his win, the prince paid tribute to his grandfather Prince Philip who died the year before and who had also loved to sail. William also took the opportunity to reiterate the race result in front of his wife.
"Catherine and I were thinking about him [Philip] today as we celebrated the return of sloop sailing here by racing off Montagu Beach. He would have been in his element!" William said. "As for the race result? Discretion is the better part of valor. Particularly if you have won, and your wife has come last."
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
