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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Zoe Forsey

Kate Middleton and Prince William's most iconic wedding photo almost didn't happen

Just like all other couples, Prince William and the then Kate Middleton got their loved ones together for a few special photos on their wedding day.

Eight years ago today, Prince Harry , the Queen , Princes Charles joined the new Duchess' family at Buckingham Palace to pose for the now iconic snaps.

But unlike most peoples' wedding photos, they weren't just posted on social media and show to family at parties, and they were viewed by millions of people around the world.

Fans loved the snaps - and there was one less formal shot in particular which went down a treat.

The picture shows Kate and William sitting with all their adorable children bridesmaids and pageboys, and it really is very sweet.

It's a very natural photo (PA)

 

But the photographer who was behind the camera has revealed this lovely photo almost didn't happen.

Hugo Burnand was given the gig after impressing the Royal Family with his snaps from Prince Charles and Camilla's wedding in 2005.

He spent weeks preparing and started setting up in the palace's Throne Room three days before the big day.

They had to plan everything down the second and it was vital that they got everything done on time.

Kate and William's families came together for the official wedding photos (AFP/Getty Images)

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Speaking to Town and Country , Hugo said: "The prep also involved meticulous time-keeping. We did dress rehearsals with stopwatches using endless staff from Buckingham Palace to fill in as family members, so we knew we had just enough time. The Fly Past was at 1:30 p.m. and we couldn't over run, even by a minute."

Hugo brought his mum along to help organise some of the youngest members of the group - and she came armed with a lot of jelly beans to get them to behave.

Hugo would tell the kids they could have a jelly bean if they did what was needed for each picture - and it worked a treat.

The Duchess of Cambridge wearing the Cartier Halo tiara on her wedding day in 2011 (Getty Images)

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But by the end of the shoot, they were all out of the sweet treats with one more picture to take.

He said: "We finished with three minutes to spare so I asked Catherine if we could do the shot we had talked about previously. And she turned to William and said, ‘What do you think?’ And he said, ‘Let’s go for it.’"

But without any jelly beans to bride the kids, Hugo simply told them to do whatever they felt was the right thing to do - with gorgeous results.

He said: That was a very spontaneous picture. That little detail there [points to Kate’s hand touching William’s knee] and William leaning in there, all these things were not directed, but a result of a good relationship with everyone."

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