Prince Louis’ Unusual First Words Were Inspired by a Hobby of His Mom’s

Prince Louis at Trooping the Colour in 2023

(Image credit: Getty)

published 26 August 2023

“Mama” or “Dada” this was not—Prince Louis, the youngest child of the Prince and Princess of Wales, had an unusual first word, and it was apparently inspired by his mother’s love of baking.

Appearing on a BBC baking show for a Christmas special, Catherine revealed that Louis’ first words were none other than “Mary Berry,” the name of the food writer, baker, and television host that Catherine was appearing alongside on the program, “A Berry Royal Christmas.” The Mirror reports that Louis learned to speak using the books on the family bookshelf at home, including many of Berry’s cookbooks.

“One of Louis’ first words was ‘Mary’ because right at his height are all my cooking books in the kitchen,” Catherine said. “And children are really fascinated by faces, and your faces are all over your cooking books, and he would say ‘That’s Mary Berry.’ So he would definitely recognize you if he saw you.”

Now five, Louis is right in the middle of his summer break from Lambrook School, where he attends alongside older siblings Prince George and Princess Charlotte. In addition to stealing our hearts at Her late Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee last summer and at King Charles’ Coronation this past May, Louis has had a number of royal firsts lately, including his first Christmas walk at Sandringham, his first Easter service alongside the rest of the royal family, and his first royal engagement. Up next? Hopefully his first royal tour, a milestone he still hasn’t taken part in just yet.

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Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.

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