When it comes to the royal family, it seems that everyone from the late Queen Elizabeth II down to Princess Charlotte has a cheeky moniker that their loved ones use to refer to them.
And you may not have even realised some are nicknames at all…
For example, did you know that Prince Harry’s real name is Henry but his parents Prince Charles and Princess Diana said that he would be known as Harry?
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is the same – her first name is legally Rachel while Meghan is her middle name.
From Lilibet Diana to Princess Beatrice, keep reading to learn your favourite royals’ secret nicknames!
01
The Prince and Princess of Wales may not be as affectionate in public as Harry and Meghan but they sure do have some sweet names for each other. Catherine was overheard calling her husband ‘Babe’ at the 2016 Chelsea Flower Show, while Prince William has been known to refer to his wife as ‘Poppet’ and ‘Darling’ from time-to-time.
Plus, according to the 2023 book Gilded Youth: An Intimate History of Growing Up in the Royal Family by Tom Quinn, William also calls Catherine ‘Babykins’.
02
When Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, announced the birth of their second child on June 4, 2021, the newborn’s memorable name, Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, had royal fans wanting to know more.
Doing away with a long and traditional title for their baby girl, Meghan and Harry turned to Queen Elizabeth for the ultimate name inspiration, choosing to use the monarch’s family nickname of ‘Lilibet’ for their daughter’s first name, though she is known as ‘Lili’.
03
The Queen had a variety of nicknames over her lifetime. When she was just two years-old, the then-Princess Elizabeth couldn’t pronounce her own name and referred to herself as ‘Tillabet’. This later became ‘Lisabet’ or ‘Lilliebeth’ before her father began calling her ‘Lilibet’, which her family members still referred to her as right up until her passing.
04
In a game of Would You Rather, Mike Tindall was asked if he’d prefer to “marry a royal or win a World Cup?” After cheekily admitting he’d done both, the father-of-two revealed that his pet name for his wife Zara Tindall is Zoey. And if you’re wondering what his answer was, Mike said he’d “obviously” pick his wife.
05
Speaking at a royal reception for The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, Duchess Sophie let slip the sweet name she gave her mother-in-law, the Queen, which was ‘Mama’.
06
Now here’s one that will put a smile on your dial! According to reports, the late Prince Philip called his wife ‘Cabbage’, which refers to the French phrase ‘mon petit chou’. In its literal translation, it means ‘my little cabbage’ but the French idiom is a way of saying ‘my darling’.
07
When he was little, Prince William used to call the Queen ‘Gary’ because he couldn’t pronounce Granny. Bless his cotton socks!
08
In a documentary for the Queen’s 90th birthday, Catherine, Princess of Wales, revealed that Prince George referred to Elizabeth as ‘Gan-Gan’; a term that royal biographer Kitty Kelly says is used by generations of royals to describe their great-grandmothers.
09
When Prince Harry interviewed the future King for BBC Radio 4’s Today show in December 2017, he began the interview by addressing his beloved dad as “Pa”.
10
To us, they’re King Charles and Queen Camilla but the royal couple have adopted the monikers of Fred and Gladys from Charles’ beloved TV show The Goon Show.
11
According to the The Mail on Sunday, Charles calls his daughter-in-law Meghan ‘Tungsten’ because she’s “tough and unbending just like the very strong metal”.
12
King Charles and his grandson Prince George have a special bond, and the Daily Mail revealed that George calls his grandfather ‘Grandpa Wales’ to pay homage to his former official title of Prince of Wales.
13
What do Queen Camilla and Lady Gaga have in common? Turns out the same name! Camilla says that her grandchildren refer to her as ‘GaGa’.
14
In an interview with NBC‘s Matt Lauer in 2007, Prince William revealed that his late mum Princess Diana gave him the nickname of ‘Wombat’ from the age of two saying, “It kind of stuck with me. I can’t get rid of it now.” The Prince of Wales added: “Not because I look like a wombat — or maybe I do.”
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In the same interview, Prince William revealed his nickname for his younger brother Prince Harry is ‘Ginger’ before adding: “You can call him whatever you want. Most of them I can’t call in front of here. You know, a bit rude. He’s got plenty.”
16
While speaking to interviewer Tom Bradby for their Harry & Meghan: An African Journey documentary, Meghan revealed her one-lettered nickname for her husband. “I’ve said for a long time to H…” At that point she elaborated, adding: “That’s what I call him.”
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Meanwhile Harry simply shortens his wife’s name to ‘Meg’.
18
During a visit to St. Andrews in 2012, Princess Catherine confessed that her classmates gave her a nickname after the school’s guinea pig. She said: “There was one called Pip and one called Squeak, so my sister [Pippa Middleton] was called Pip and I was Squeak.”
19
While chatting to a blogger and mum-of-two in Belfast, Catherine revealed that she calls her daughter, Princess Charlotte, ‘Lottie’.
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Prince George has his own nickname too, though. A parent of a fellow student at Thomas’s Battersea told Vanity Fair that the popular young royal is called ‘PG’ by his school pals.
21
Beatrice is a rather traditional name but the princess’ younger sister Eugenie addressed her as ‘Beabea’ in a sweet birthday message on Instagram.
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Eugenie also has a sweet nickname for her and Beatrice’s mum: Sarah ‘Fergie’ Ferguson, Duchess of York. During a chat for The Anti-Slavery Collective in March 2024, Eugenie referred to Fergie as, “Mumsy.”
