Prince William Gifted Paddington Bear Toy During Windsor Walkabout

Prince William, Prince of Wales shakes hands with members of the public on the Long walk at Windsor Castle on September 10, 2022 in Windsor, England. Crowds have gathered and tributes left at the gates of Windsor Castle to Queen Elizabeth II, who died at Balmoral Castle on 8 September, 2022.

(Image credit: Photo by Chris Jackson / Getty)

During walkabouts, members of the Royal Family are traditionally presented with all sorts of gifts—often flowers or food, but sometimes other symbolic items, too.

When Princes William and Harry and their wives, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, greeted well-wishers in Windsor this weekend following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, they were of course given many items.

But it's one special plushy that's warming hearts everywhere: a Paddington bear toy gifted to Prince William in memory of his grandmother.

A little girl gave it to the Prince of Wales from her perch on her father's shoulders, a gesture he really appreciated. "That is so sweet. Thank you very much," the royal told her, according to the Daily Mail.

Pointing to a pile of flowers and other tributes to the Queen, William then asked, "Is that going over there or do you want me to keep it?"

The little girl wanted him to keep it, while her father said, "Either, maybe give it to your children."

William seemed to think that was a good idea, saying, "I might give it to George, thank you very much."

As you probably already know, the choice of a Paddington bear toy is far from innocuous: It's an adorable nod to the Queen's Jubilee skit, in which she invites the clumsy bear to tea at Buckingham Palace, only for him to make a series of faux-pas, before offering her a marmalade sandwich he keeps in his iconic red hat.

The fictional bear will likely always be associated with the monarch from now on. He even paid his respects to her on Twitter, writing, "Thank you Ma'am, for everything," which is a line from the skit. *sobs*

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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.