Prince William and Kate Middleton reveal family secrets in Christmas documentary

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have earned wide praise for their intimate new Christmas documentary with celebrity chef Mary Berry.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been praised for their “classy” appearance on a new Christmas documentary that revealed intimate details about their family life, including one of Prince Louis’s funny first words.

A Berry Royal Christmas aired on the BBC on Monday night and saw Prince William and Kate Middleton partner with celebrity chef Mary Berry to throw a Christmas party for dozens of charity volunteers working over the festive period.

Mary Berry joined the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on a number of royal visits for the doco. Picture: BBC via AP

The trio visited four different charities over the hour-long special, including a homeless centre Prince William once visited with his mother Princess Diana.

“It was one of the first places I came to actually. I must have been between eight and 10 … and it had a profound impact on me,” he said.

“My mother knew what she was doing with it. She realised that it’s very important when you grow up, especially in the life we grew up in, that you realise life happens beyond palace walls and that you see real people struggling with real issues.”

As The Duke of Cambridge and Mary Berry make tea for those at The Passage homeless charity, they talk about his passion for supporting society’s most vulnerable people. #ABerryRoyalChristmas @KensingtonRoyal pic.twitter.com/h1GfkyA94H

— BBC One (@BBCOne) December 16, 2019

For that reason, the Duke said he regularly talked to his two eldest children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, about homelessness and the need to support society’s most vulnerable people.

“On the school run already, bear in mind they’re six and four, whenever we see anyone who is sleeping rough on the streets, I talk about it and I point it out and I explain why and they’re all very interested,” he said.

“They’re like: ‘Why can’t they go home?’.”

Prince George and Princess Charlotte both attend St Thomas's Battersea in London. Picture: Aaron Chown – WPA Pool/Getty Images

PRINCE LOUIS’S FIRST WORDS

Kate also revealed an adorable detail about the couple’s youngest child, 20-month-old Prince Louis, while chatting with Berry.

She confessed that one of his first words was “his version of Mary” because the family had one of her cookbooks on their kitchen shelf.

The story of Prince Louis’s first words😍. I love how Catherine was barely maintaining her laugh😅😂 #ABerryRoyalChristmas pic.twitter.com/KyH1FmR5LY

— Isa (@isaguor) December 16, 2019

“Right at his height are all my cooking books in the kitchen bookshelf,” she said.

“And children are really fascinated by faces, and your face is all over your cooking books and he would say ‘That’s Mary Berry’.

“So he would definitely recognise you if he saw you today.”

Kate revealed one of Prince Louis’s first words was ‘Mary’. Picture: Chris Jackson/Getty Images

She also said the young prince liked to eat beetroots. Picture: Matt Porteous/Kensington Palace via Getty Images

The Duchess also revealed Prince William wooed her with food when they first started dating during university, impressing her with dishes “like bolognese”.

The family now grows their own vegetables, she said, and while Prince Louis loves beetroots, Princess Charlotte “obviously” likes her Charlotte potatoes.

It's getting competitive in the kitchen...#ABerryRoyalChristmas pic.twitter.com/OrDuFMK23e

— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) December 16, 2019

While Prince George’s favourite vegetable remains a mystery, Prince William said the future king was very into football.

He said he told his son he could support “anyone but Chelsea”, so that was the team the cheeky prince now cheered for.

‘WONDERFUL CONTRAST TO OTHER DOCO’

Viewers were quick to compare the documentary to “the other” royal doco that aired earlier this year about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s royal tour to Southern Africa.

In that ITV special, Prince Harry revealed there was a rift between him and his brother, while Meghan revealed her new royal life was taking a toll.

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“Such a wonderful contrast to the other royal ‘documentary’ we have seen this year,” one person wrote on Twitter.

What I love about William and Kate is how grounded they are. They’re both aware of their privilege and are using their position to give back and help others less fortunate (but without patronising and coming across as “saviours”) - just as it should be 👑#ABerryRoyalChristmas

— Hannah (@hannah_liz73) December 16, 2019

Catherine showing everyone how a royal TV appearance should be done. Look smart, talk about the charity, be charming, don’t moan about self. It’s not rocket science. #ABerryRoyalChristmas

— Mrs T (@isitjustmeMrsT) December 16, 2019

Hearing Prince William talk so passionately about charity, mental health and how grateful he is for being born privileged and wanting to share that good fortune to help others is heart warming. What a great guy! #ABerryRoyalChristmas

— Sar Bear (@S0prentice) December 16, 2019

#ABerryRoyalChristmas is the best programme I've ever seen involving the Royal Family, highlighting the work William and Katherine do for homeless and vulnerable people. So down-to-earth and honest. Brilliant.

— Caroline (@C_arolin_e77) December 16, 2019

Another wrote: “Our country’s in great hands with Wills and Kate. Kind, level headed people”.