Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Latest Issue
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Autumn Winter 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    1. Culture
    2. Celebrity News
    3. Royal News

    Princess Diana once threw the cheekiest birthday party for Prince William

    Proof that she had the best sense of humour

    Lucy Abbersteen's avatar
    By Lucy Abbersteen
    Published 22 June 2018 In News

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    (Image credit: HARTLEY/BEIRNE/REX/Shutterstock)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    Proof that she had the best sense of humour

    Yesterday Prince William celebrated his 36th birthday by carrying out his royal duties, as per usual. But his birthday weren't always so work-focused.

    Princess Diana famously invited supermodels to the palace for her eldest son's 13th birthday – but her former head chef Darren McGrady has revealed her sense of humour didn't stop there for the occasion.

    'I remember that day really well because she told me they were coming. I was super excited and I wanted to meet them too but I didn't get the chance,' he told HELLO! online. 'It was Claudia Schiffer, Christy Turlington and Naomi Campbell.'

    However, inviting supermodels to meet her teenage son wasn't the only trick up Diana's sleeve – she had something much funnier planned.

    You may like
    • Emilia Clarke Emilia Clarke: “That's my goal for the next decade of my life: to take it lightly. But it requires strength.”
    • image of Rosamund Pike in Saltburn with gift guide products around it Gifts for the Woman... in Her ‘Dinner Party Hostess’ Era
    • Broken disco ball smashed to pieces on the floor. Black and white for a dramatic touch. Shiny backdrop is defocused. Why Do Men Ruin Your Birthday?

    'I came into work that morning and went down to the refrigerator, opened the door and I was just confronted with the biggest pair of boobs I've ever seen in my life. The Princess had ordered a boobs cake for William's 13th birthday. I wish I'd taken a photograph of it!

    'I didn't know anything about it, I just thought, "Oh my gosh." I asked the butler, "What on earth is this?" and he said the Princess had ordered it for William's birthday.'

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    Hilarious.

    '[Diana] loved embarrassing people in the nicest way, in a fun way, whether it was telling a dirty, risqué joke – which usually got me. William just went bright-red.'

    We're sure the whole thing is one of William's many treasured memories about his mother and her cracking sense of humour.

    Lucy Abbersteen
    Lucy Abbersteen
    Social Links Navigation
    Beauty Contributor

    Lucy is a freelance beauty editor and contributor at Marie Claire, and has also written for titles including Cosmopolitan, Refinery29, Glamour and woman&home. She was previously Marie Claire’s junior beauty editor. During her career, she’s covered everything from backstage beauty at fashion week to interviews with famous faces like Drag Race royalty and Little Mix. As for her beauty ethos, she’s a big advocate for not having to spend a fortune on beauty products to get good results. When she’s not got beauty on the brain you’ll probably find her reading or Netflix-ing.

    Read more
    Emilia Clarke
    Culture Emilia Clarke: “That's my goal for the next decade of my life: to take it lightly. But it requires strength.”
    image of Rosamund Pike in Saltburn with gift guide products around it
    Shopping Gifts for the Woman... in Her ‘Dinner Party Hostess’ Era
     
     
    Broken disco ball smashed to pieces on the floor. Black and white for a dramatic touch. Shiny backdrop is defocused.
    Relationships Why Do Men Ruin Your Birthday?
    image of Reese Witherspoon in Legally Blonde with gift guide products around it
    Shopping Gifts for the Woman in Her... ‘Bring Me Joy’ Era
     
     
    Latest in Royal News
    The Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Isles of Mull and Iona
    Royal News Royal Experts Predict a Major Milestone From Princess Kate This Autumn
    The Duke and Duchess of Sussex in Colombia
    Royal News Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Had a Secret UK Home in the First Year of Their Marriage
     
     
    The Prince and Princess of Wales visit Southport
    Royal News Prince William Has Given an Emotional Update on Princess Kate
    The Prince and Princess of Wales attend a state visit by the President of the French Republic in 2025
    Royal News Why Prince William and Princess Kate ‘Won’t Change" Their Minds on the Buckingham Palace Situation
     
     
    Latest in News
    New Beauty Launches: Amouage, Haus Labs, XERF
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Is XERF Worth the Hype? Plus, Amouage’s New Body Collection & The Beauty Beat Returns
    Jeans And Jackets
    Shopping Celine Dion, Daisy Edgar-Jones and Sarah Pidgeon Swear by This Trophy Jacket-and-Jeans Formula for Instant Fashion Confidence
     
     
    Vogue World Robots
    Fashion AI Is Shaping the Future of Fashion—Can Creative Thought Survive?
    New Beauty Launches Romilly Wilde / Cécred / Bobbi Brown
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Cécred Comes to the UK, Romilly Wilde Returns & £22 Skincare Gets Serious
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.