True story: in half the photos from the Cambridges’ trip to Blackpool on Wednesday, the photographers or photo agencies cropped Prince William out. I get that “the money shot” is always going to be Kate – those photos will be printed and reprinted far and wide because of fashion and hair and makeup and jewelry. But still, William is the second in line to the throne and there are only a handful of photos out there where photographers took shots of just him. Anyway, part of the Cambridges’ trip to Blackpool involved a trip to a playground, where Will chatted with a fellow dad about how he’s completely helpless when it comes to Charlotte’s hair.
Prince William joked with a fellow dad on Tuesday about the struggles of doing their daughters’ hair. William, 37, was chatting to a local as he and wife Kate Middleton visited a park in Blackpool that had been transformed from a place where addicts once congregated to a family-friendly playground.
A resident who belongs to the group Dads 4 Life got a laugh from William and Kate as he spoke of the challenges of styling his little girl’s hair, adding that he finally learned after watching YouTube tutorials.
“Never try to do a ponytail!” William commiserated. “Nightmare.”
Kate asked him, “Have you tried to do a plait [braid]? It’s the weaving…really hard.”
William said, “I can do [3-year-old Princess Charlotte’s] ponytail, but that’s about it as I don’t have enough hair to practice on!”
I’ve had long hair since childhood and since I was a little girl, I could do braids and french braids on myself. I had to learn because both my parents sucked at it. My mom used to do my french braids so tight that I would get headaches. That being said, ponytails are f–king easy. CRAZY EASY. So… I mean, I’m not going to sit here and claim that William is an a–hole for not being able to do his daughter’s hair. It’s a lot trickier than it sounds, especially if Charlotte asks for a braid or something. But I do think William is trying too hard to sound like an everyday bloke. Also: again, ponytails are NOT HARD.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Seriously men get away with not being able to do such basic crap. Every time my father microwaves something he has to ask my mother how to use it.
My husband is exactly the same. Tying my daughter’s hair in a ponytail is just one of those things that he’s decided that he just “can’t do”, and any time I’m not around and he has to try he proves it to himself again.
I cannot for the life of me figure out how to put my niece’s hair in a ponytail. It is so soft and fine, I can’t keep is in my hand long enough to get a band around it.
Good old situational helplessness to get out of doing tasks they don’t want to do, usually includes any tasks about the home and emotional labour.
Ding ding ding!!! Stop letting men infantilize themselves.
To be fair (and not because I’m dumb, I just don’t keep track) I wait for my husband to tell me when we need an oil change, have never been aware of needing any spark plugs, and I perfectly get away with it.
If I lived alone, yeah I’d figure it out, I just use his bandwidth to store that info.
I, on the other hand, know how many leggings the girls have, who needs new socks, how much flour is in the pantry, and know that baseboards actually need to be cleaned. These things would never occur to him, and that doesn’t make him dumb or ignorant either. It’s ok.
The first ponytails suck, and many stop at that instead of realizing they get better. They’ve never done them before, how would they be perfect right away?? My husband made several awful ponytails until they just got better and now he rocks.
Yep, when we only had one daughter I was the only one doing her hair but since our second came along my husband has had to learn and yes the first few tries are hilarious. Like, did you try to do it that bad??? He’s great now and with my oldest who has special needs he gives her baths now because she’s too heavy for me to feel safe lifting her out when she’s wet and he brushes and braids her hair afterwards. He’s actually better then me at her braids at this point.
My dad couldn’t do more than a ponytail on me if you held a gun to his head lol (well, he *could*, but I’d look a fright!). Most men can’t because they don’t even try to learn. Those who *do*, will learn! It’s NOT that hard! We don’t have extra fingers that help us do it! lol
That said, your remark reminds me of a comedienne, in the 80s (or was it the 90s? Can’t remember!) who said her father was so hopeless in understanding microwaves, he used to stand in front of it yelling, “Hurry up!!”
If someone says they “can’t” do basic skills they need to do it more often, not less, so they actually learn. Can’t cook. Can’t clean. Can’t tie a ponytail. You might not end up a Bobby Flay / Marie Kondo / Vidal Sassoon but you could learn to do the basics well with practice.
My mom as a diabetic would go into the hospital for long stretches as a kid. I give him credit, he tried to do my hair . I remember his big calloused man hands on my head trying to grip the clips and ponytail. I always went to school w an attempted hairstyle but he would make everything loose and it will fall out or a clip would fall in my face. I remember the teachers asking if everything at home was ok bc I was no wear near as coiffed as usual! I think there is an element of truth to his story.
Microwave ovens… I remember coming home later than expected one day, and opened the door to the foulest smell. The kids and I looked at one another, the kids rolling their eyes. I asked husband what the reek was. He had no idea, so the investigation began. Finally, I discovered a bowl in the microwave, containing an unidentifiable, vulcanised substance. The smell, up close made me gag. I asked husband what it was. He slapped his face and said, “Oh the bloody cat food. No wonder she’s whining…” He said he’d remembered me saying to zap the (small amount of) cat food fr 30 seconds if it had been in the fridge. He did. For 30 minutes on full power. I put the lot in the bin, but that smell took days to get rid of. He was hopeless with stuff Ike that. But floor washing? Genius. I had the cleanest, sparkliest tiles in the state.
Megan-try spraying it with a little hairspray first. It will give your niece’s hair some texture to hang onto.
When I was little my mom had to go out of town for a while. My dad couldn’t do my hair AT ALL, not even a simple ponytail. Ten days later my mom was trying to comb out all the knots and tangles and finally had to cut it all off. I ended up with a really short haircut and was so mad at my dad for it.
My sister and I were 9 and 7 when my mother went to visit her sister for a week. She came back and found us both with the shortest cuts possible. My dad even told her he was surprised she didn’t think of it herself.
Oh, you poor love, Lucky! Nowadays, we know the trick – a bit of patience and a lot of conditioner. A few years ago, I taught a lovely girl named Ashley in my kindergarten class. She had the most beautiful, the most perfect hair I had, and have, ever seen on a child. Every, single day. The tidiest pony tails, the neatest plaits or braids, ever. Even when loose, down past her shoulders, it looked as if she’d just come from the hairdresser. There was never a hair out of place. I checked how it fell at the back, and it always looked as if it had just been trimmed – not one scraggy bit, or one hair just that teeny bit longer. No, her mother was not a hairdresser. It became our daily conversation. Ashley’s hair was a thing of wonder. One morning, as I was handing out new books I came to Ashley and almost fell over. Not. Perfect. Hair. I was speechless. She looked up at me, rolled her eyes and said, “I know,Miss. Mum had to leave early to take Nanna to the airport. Dad did it.”
God, when I was little my dad had to learn to do hair and black hair can be tricky. My mom was an ob nurse/midwife so would work nights so my dad was expected to get us all ready for school in the morning.
He had to learn to braid our hair and he eventually became competent at it. People use to be so impressed that he could get us ready but my mom would say “Your dad is an engineer, he can certainly figure out braiding. And daddy shouldn’t get credit for helping to take care of you- he helped make you, he is as responsible for you as I am”.
Only as an adult can I fully appreciate what she was trying to teach us
I’m wondering if Charlotte is still or wiggling around when he’s trying to do her hair.
This. My 4 year old is still impossible. She whines and cries just when I brush out her hair, let alone when I try to do a pony. Some kids seem to be all about getting their hair done- others, not so much. Also- even though she is bad for me – she is far worse for my husband. That being said, when Nana is in town, she sits perfectly still and quiet.
This reminds me of a “For Better or For Worse” comic when Elizabeth is quiet for Granny, captioned (paraphrased) “grandma gave me a buck” or something. Maybe Nana has a secret….
Yeah, I was like that as a little kid. My mom had to put in a battle to do anything from brushing on with my hair.
Fair point, but isn’t that what YouTube’s for? My three-year-old doesn’t get screen time except on a) long flights and b) when I have to do anything to her hair. I’ve memorized how many minutes it takes to braid her hair based on the length of Daniel Tiger video clips.
When I was little I would cry if my dad did my hair because it would come out so ugly lol I remember his hands felt too big for my head, it just wasn’t like when my mom did it
As much as I hate the feigned helplessness thing that a lot of men use to get out of doing things for the kids / around the house … “I don’t have enough hair to practice on” legit made me laugh out loud.
me, too!
My brother is the same. He can’t do his daughter’s hair, even just brushing them. Nightmare
I understand William, kids move & complain, a lot
My dad was never able to put my hair in a ponytail, so I don’t see anything wrong with what William said?
I don’t see anything wrong with it either. It’s not like men grow up putting their own hair in ponytails. Or sitting around playing with each other’s hair. When they have a daughter, it’s like a crash course in hairstyling. Pony tails may not be that hard when you’re used to doing it. But when you’re learning on a wiggly toddler, who you’re probably afraid of hurting? Yeah, it’s hard. I broke my hand a while ago, and my husband had to put my hair in a ponytail every day. God, he was so bad at it. I’d get to the office and ask someone to fix it.
Lol yea well William and Kate can do no right here.
Give him a break he is not use to lots of hair (ba-dum tish 🥁)
Surely Nanny Maria can do a ponytail.
This annoys me. It annoys me when my husband refuses to learn how to half-pull my daughter’s hair back so her hair isn’t in her face. It annoys me when some men say “I don’t know how to do a girl’s hair style.” Like Kaiser said – a pony tail isn’t hard! If Charlotte (similar to my daughter) squirms around or won’t sit still, give her a toy or book. Bam – you’ve got a minimum of 15-30 seconds to pull it back or up. Some men just don’t care. They could take out and replace a dang fuel line in a car, but asking them to something basic is way too much.
Yes, it annoys me as well. My brother told my SIL once that he couldn’t do a ponytail on their daughter. Guess who was in charge of their hair from that point on? He never did a braid or anything, but he learned really fast how to do a simple ponytail or pigtails.
I don’t even especially care if William puts Charlotte’s hair up or not, I care that its this feigned helplessness that people think is a-ok from fathers.
Ponytails are hard to get right – or straight – on little girls who wriggle like an octopus in a string bag. Inserting them into various garments when they’re filled with morning beans is even more exhausting.
I really am rather glad that I don’t have children. I absolutely loved and adored my ex’s daughter, but I felt as though I’d been run over by a lorry by the end of the day.
I don’t get this- my parents divorced when I was pretty young, and my dad learned to be a hair style baller! He was putting my hair in foam rollers every night, and he even did my hair once for a dance! I never had better hair than when my dad styled it.
Nice! A dad who lets you put every hair clip you own in his hair is what I got. Saved money on dolls.
My dad was and is a great and involved father, but he NEVER did my hair. Which I think is for the best if he didn’t think he’d do well. My mom was really good at it and loved to do french braids on me.
I can’t remember my dad ever doing anything with mine, either. And he was very involved. But I also had really short hair for most of my childhood, and when it got longer I just did it myself.
I was laying on the couch with my husband the other night with my hair in a ponytail, and he braided it just to prove he could ahhaa. Towards the end there was a “oh god… something went wrong” because he’d missed a piece at first and it got added in almost at the end so it just stuck out straight for most of it’s length. Otherwise, though, he did a pretty decent job ahha.
Willingness to learn hair stuff aside, everything about Will screams “I won’t lift a finger unless I have to!”. It’s lame.
I have super fine, thin hair and as a grown ass woman I still cannot get a ponytail right in my hair, let alone braids! hahaha. I can totally understand how he feels 🙂
Same. I have to use little-girl bands to hold my hair in place, there’s never been enough to fill out an adult barrette or band. I need falsies but for hair. ; )
same here and Charlotte’s hair looks super-fine. So no shade from my side for his comment…
Same here. I can only use bands if they are really tight and barrettes are completely out unless they are pressure clips. And my fine hair slides right out of the tightest braid in 10 minutes unless I douse it in hairspray.
And Charlotte looks like she’s got really fine toddler hair — I bet it doesn’t stay in any kind of pony tail or braid for long.
Wills is hopeless when it comes to a lot of things, not only ponytails.
Hair (yes, even a basic ponytail) was never my strong point. When our daughter was 4, I discovered my husband was a genius at braids, twists and all sorts of creative styles using those cute sparkly butterfly clips, even with all her tight curls. What a welcome revelation! Decades later, however, my husband still “struggles” with how to clean a kitchen or bathroom. Ah, well, you win some, you lose some.
@Kaiser: I am in AWE you can braid your own hair, and also a French Braid….absolute awe! Would that I could!
Well I probably cant trim a guys beard any better. Its cos they never had to do it before (on themselves or on someone else, at any age).
Our daughter was the type to give us both, mother and father, specific step-by-step instructions every single time to ensure the pony tail met her requirements. We think she’s growing up to be a project manager.
My husband practiced braiding on some yarn or ribbons, I think, to get the hang of it, before he moved to actual hair on a scalp.
My mom kept both my hair & that of my sister’s short until we could take care of it ourselves, so, maybe age 10 or so I started letting it grow out. No pony-tail wrangling for my mom or dad!
I admit I laughed at the no hair comment but it’s no excuse. My husband has no hair and he still managed to learn to put our daughter’s hair in a ponytail. He has even attempted (messy, uneven) pigtails but is getting better each time! I do her hair most of the time but neither us has a high tolerance for learned helplessness and he proactively tried to learn for times I am not nearby.
A salon in my area does Daddy and me days where they have a little party for the kids and teach dads simple hairstyles. I think it’s great bonding time and a wonderful idea!
Look at that face! That’s a face only a…person with a net worth over $20 million…could love.
Vlad and Un need to stop worrying about nuclear bombs. All they need to do is get Willy and that thing Emily Rata-whatever-ski is married to in the same room. (Easy: A TedX talk about making Biennale more elephant-friendly.) The douche-splosion would take out half the hemisphere! Because that’s what happens when two alpha smugs get within 5 feet of each other.
But then again, nothing happened at Fyre Festival, and Manhattan still stands…as does…oh nevermind….guess that science has been debunked.
Alpha smugs indeed
No matter what he does he will always be bad for you . No wonder. You are a bunch of hypocrites, biased people.
Lighten up. Willy need to learn how to laugh at himself.
Ach, it was just chit chat! He’s doing well, considering he isn’t the matey bloke that Harry is.
Also….whenever I have a mad notion to put my hair in short plaits (strictly home alone) I have the devil of a job doing the one on the left. I get a overwhelming feeling that I need to approach it from over, under, sideways, down….mad contortions.
Maybe it’s a left-hander excuse (feeble, I know)
I think William is just trying to be “relatable.” Yes, he’s the future king, but he is a “hands on” dad!! He tries to do hair and change diapers! He’s tired from having small children, just like you common folks!
For William, I think this is an improvement. Trying to be warmer, trying not to be so aloof. I’m sure he sees Harry’s ease with people, and has to be a bit jealous. Harry is always written up about how good he is with people. Now look, William tries to be a bit more conversational, put himself out there a bit and BAM! “William is a hands on Dad!!” gets top line in the papers. I think it’s good for him to have to try harder to be engaged and friendly.
I have to say the videos I’ve seen of him relating to people, particularly children, one-on-one show him to be warm and down-to-earth. For some reason, this doesn’t translate to the bigger picture. There’s a weird disconnect. For her part, Katherine seems to be coming across a lot better these days. I think Meghan has forced both to up their games, which is a good thing.
Both Will and Kate come across better in video than still photos. I read ages ago that Will is actually very shy and all this attention does not come naturally to him which possibly explains his stiffness.
Actually, ponytails can be hard on toddlers. Really hard.
Maybe dealing with her hair reminds him he’s running out of his own.
It does depend on the hair type. My daughter has fine curly hair that escapes any ponytail unless it is super tight in which case she cries. I have gotten the hang of it but my husband struggles more and with the wiggling.
So the other day, while visiting my Mom in Florida, my now 25 year old daughter and I were looking through old child pics of her. (My Mom has saved every photo I’ve ever sent her.) There are several pics where my daughter’s bangs are half way up her forehead and she was appalled by how awful it looks. “Was this when you cut my bangs yourself?” asked she. “Yup,” replied I. I was totally inept. Kept trying to even both sides out and kept failing. And they just kept getting shorter and shorter.
So, yeah, we can’t all be good at everything.
William is probably trying to make Charlotte’s ponytail look as good as when Mom does it. When he can’t, I bet she protests. Cuz that’s what kids do at that age. Especially little girls. Their hair has to be just so.
Well, men would probably get better if they tried. Look at the Hair Dad on Facebook : he got very good at it.
One of my coworkers has a daughter who is of mixed ethnicity (my coworker is white, the mom is black). The little girl has very curly hair. The dad who never had any experience with girls hair and certainly not that curly, is doing an amazing job. Each and every single morning his daughter gets out the door with her hair looking great. You just have to try and try again until it looks good.
Try doing pony tails on a child with at least 5 cowlicks. It. Is. Hard.
My daughter’s hair made me cry sometimes.
Well kudos to Will for being a normal dude who will be king some century from now. 😄👑
I also learned at young age how to braid – French, Dutch, etc – my own hair, but it wasn’t because everyone around me was incompetent, I just liked doing things myself.
I don’t see how ponytails are difficult. I mean, has he never tied a bag? Tied anything? 🤔
I mean, it’s just small talk…
Has anyone seen that video of the dad who uses the vacuum hose attachment to do his daughters ponytails? Will should do that! LOL
What I find weird here is that Kate is asking William if he’s ever tried doing a plait on Charlotte. How little time do they spend as a family that she doesn’t know if he’s ever tried that? In the morning, when Charlottes getting her hair done by Will or Kate, doesn’t the other parent see what’s going on? How big is their house, how sequestered are they all? I have a son, but when I pick out his clothes or dress him, my husband still sees our son—he knows what he’s wearing. And vice versa if my husband picks out our son’s clothes. Wouldn’t Kate know what styles Will is able to do on Charlotte by either seeing Will doing Charlotte’s hair or by seeing Charlotte at any point in the day after her hair’s been done? Does she have a plait in? Even a bad one? Then yes, he’s tried plaiting her hair. I just find it so weird that they’re making it sound like he does her hair sometimes (or tries to) and yet Kate apparently never sees the attempt, or the results, AND they never talk about what styles he’s tried or can do.
@Amy Too, is she asking William though? Or was the question directed to the local father they were chatting with?
I remember when my mom got the flu and my dad had to make us breakfast. He tried to convince us the burn marks on the scrambled eggs were iron pieces from the pan which was good for us because you need iron.
He has what? 3 nannies who do it for him but nice try trying to sound like a regular Joe William. It must be difficult to have to constantly relate to common folk when you live in such wealth and privilege.
My husband couldnt do either of my daughters hair. His hands are huge. He would go through three ponytail holders trying to get it right. He finally just zip tied their hair.
I used to work in a place that required long hair to be pulled back, but because of disability, I have trouble with doing my hair. My male boss, who had little girls, was always happy to help out. We used to laugh at the double takes when people would catch sight of my big gym bro boss doing a perfect braid.
I don’t see anything wrong with his comments. My dad was a great and involved dad and now an involved pawpaw and the times he had to do my hair for soccer practice were…..not good. I think it’s a cute and relatable story!
My hair is curly. Yes, I can put it in a ponytail, but i always long for the sleek-looking ponytails.
Eh, I’m not going to pick at him for this. My husband’s ponytail attempts on our daughter have been less than stellar.
My mother couldn’t do my hair or my sisters hair so it was cut short. We had short hair in the the 70s when most of our friends had very long hair.
We still resent it and laugh about it too.
I doubt neither William nor Kate are really out here doing Charlotte’s hair, lmao. They have multiple nannies for that, after all.