- The Prince and Princess of Wales attended the BAFTAs on February 22.
- This was the couple's first appearance since ex-Prince Andrew was arrested.
- William and Kate's body language hinted at tons of tension, and they didn't touch at all.
Prince William and Kate Middleton made a somewhat awkward return to the red carpet at the 2026 BAFTAs. Awkward, because the outing came just days after William's disgraced uncle, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was arrested on royal property and hauled off to jail for the better part of the day—throwing the monarchy into even more chaos than usual.
And while William and Kate were clearly told to keep up appearances and stick to their previously planned schedule, their body language at the BAFTAs betrayed tons of underlying tension.
"William and Kate delivered their usual, impeccable red carpet A-list glamour here, but there are a handful of tells that might reflect the undeniable tensions of the past week," body language expert Judi James tells Hello Magazine. "[The royals] walk side by side with their arms hanging loose at their sides, with a closeness of the dangling inner hands suggesting a desire to clasp hands here or perhaps to perform the kind of signature truncated touches, pats and strokes they often give each other to support each other at events like this. Instead of touching, though, we can see the fingers of William's right hand slightly curled so that his index finger touches his thumb, hinting at a self-soothe ritual."
Meanwhile, William's lips were "pulled inward and his brows pulled into a small frown" which suggested anxiety.
Reminder: Andrew was arrested for "suspicion of misconduct in public office" and now there are calls for King Charles to abdicate and William to step up to the throne, so yep, "anxiety" seems accurate.
