Prince William and Kate Middleton's big royal name change to 'move with the times'

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge travel to Hopkins, a small village on the coast which is considered the cultural centre of the Garifuna community in Belize.
(Image credit: Getty Images / Chris Jackson)

Prince William and Kate Middleton are reportedly hoping to break royal protocol and begin to use their first names during official engagements, in order to seem more approachable.

The couple are said to be hoping to ditch their royal titles in a bid to ‘modernise’ the monarchy and appear more ‘approachable', according to a royal insider. 

Instead of being formally referred to as the ‘Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’ at royal outings and engagements, the pair reportedly wish to be addressed by their first names. While they would not permanently drop their HRH titles, they could scrap the protocol of needing to be addressed so formally by the public. 

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge during a visit to Abaco on March 26, 2022 in Great Abaco, Bahamas.

“They want to be more approachable, less formal, less stuffy and breakaway with a lot of the tradition," a royal source told The Mirror. 

The insider also revealed that bows and curtsies could also be scrapped as William wants to "move with the times".  These major changes come after William and Kate’s controversial Caribbean tour came under fire and was met with protests.

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attend the inaugural Commissioning Parade for service personnel from across the Caribbean who have recently completed the Caribbean Military Academy’s Officer Training Programme at Jamaica Defence Force on March 24, 2022 in Kingston, Jamaica

The Sunday Mirror reports that William, who is second in line to the throne, wants to "tear up the royal rulebook" following the outcry.

A source told the publication that upon their return, “The general consensus was that the tour seemed out of date, out of touch, too formal and stuffy.

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge depart from Norman Manley International Airport as part of the Royal tour of the Caribbean on March 24, 2022 in Kingston, Jamaica.

“So now it’s more ‘Wills and Kate’ instead of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge...‘Just call me Wills’ type of thing.”

This is likely one of many changes we will see William and Kate make as they gear up for their royal future. As William will one day be King, he will no doubt want the monarchy to reflect his own, modern values.

Naomi Jamieson
Lifestyle News Writer

Naomi is a Lifestyle News Writer with the Lifestyle team and has recently earned her Gold Standard Diploma in Journalism from the NCTJ. She has a background in design, having studied Illustration at Plymouth University but has taken a leap into the world of journalism after always having a passion for writing. She currently writes pieces on beauty, fashion, and entertainment for Goodto.com and My Imperfect Life.