Prince William, Kate Middleton’s secret nicknames exposed as former staffer reveals palace WhatsApp habits

Read the original at Fox News ↗
Fox News · collected 2026-10-03 · by Stephanie Nolasco

Quick Summary

A former royal staffer revealed on GB News that Prince William and Kate Middleton use the nicknames "Bobcat" and "Mrs. Bobcat," respectively, in their WhatsApp conversations with staff. Jack Stooks, who worked for King Charles for 21 years, explained that these aliases help maintain privacy if phones are lost or stolen. The article also mentions other royal nicknames like Harry being called "Baz," and adds that the royals frequently use messaging apps to communicate with each other and a small group of trusted staff members.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-03, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

A former royal staffer revealed that Prince William, Kate Middleton, and other members of the British royal family use nicknames on WhatsApp to maintain privacy. According to Jack Stooks, who worked for King Charles at Highgrove for 21 years, William was called "Bobcat," while Harry was known as "Baz." After joining the family, Kate became known as “Mrs. Bobcat.” Staff members were only given royal phone numbers for logistical purposes and had to keep these details confidential. The use of nicknames ensures that if a phone is compromised, the real identities of the royals remain secure.

Written for “Royal Family Nicknames” on 2026-10-04, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
61
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
13%
8 of 61 hedged
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Correction & hedging signals
68.6
corrections and hedging in what we collected; not a measure of accuracy
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Analyzed 2026-10-03 · how these are computed

Story

📰 Royal Family Nicknames
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

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Who wrote this

Stephanie Nolasco
22 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 "I want him to be able to go there and enjoy Vitello's as he's grown up, God willing, as long as Vitello's is there.
🔮 A former royal staffer is pulling back the curtain on Prince William and Kate Middleton's reported WhatsApp nicknames.
🔮 People reported that the passage will be corrected in the second edition of "Swan Song."
🔮 The statement continued, "It is concerning enough that certain European paparazzi appear unwilling to respect the privacy of children at school.
🔮 "William did well," Cruise added with a smile.
🔮 King Charles III and Prince William are said to be furious at Charles Spencer's new book, which makes damning allegations about the monarch and reopens decades-old wounds within the royal family.
🔮 "I never, in a million years growing up, thought I would ever be in Playboy," she said.
🔮 Fox News may be compensated for or earn a commission if you buy through our referral links.
🔮 "Ultimately, Harry may finally be recognizing what has always seemed so obvious to the rest of us — being born a prince is an unbelievable privilege.
🔮 " "There were days when I wished I could just take the entire day to dedicate to pageant prep, but that's not where I am," Kelley said.
Also by Stephanie Nolasco
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 22 articles by Stephanie Nolasco →

Topics

Buckingham Palace Fox News Digital Highgrove OLBG WhatsApp

Subjects

William PERSON · 7× Stooks PERSON · 6× Fox News Digital ORG · 5× Baz PERSON · 3× Charles PERSON · 3× Fred PERSON · 3× Gary PERSON · 3× Gladys PERSON · 3× Harry PERSON · 3× WhatsApp ORG · 2×

Narrative

" "They have groups with their friends, and there is also a family group with the royal cousins, including Prince William, Zara Tindall, Peter Phillips and the York sisters," he continued.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-03
🔮 A former royal staffer is pulling back the curtain on Prince William and Kate Middleton's reported WhatsApp nicknames.

Claims (61 extracted, 8 hedged)

A former royal staffer is pulling back the curtain on Prince William and Kate Middleton's reported WhatsApp nicknames. asserted
staffer → pull → nicknames
Jack Stooks, who worked for King Charles for 21 years as a gardener at Highgrove, shared a rare glimpse into how members of the royal family reportedly identified one another on the messaging app. uncertain
members → work → app
"I remember Princes William and Harry always had the latest phones," Stooks explained to GB News. asserted
Stooks → remember → News
"They actually gave their numbers out to staff so we could contact them about logistical things. uncertain
we → give → things
They also had our numbers, and they would just WhatsApp us if they needed anything." asserted
they → have → anything
"We couldn't have them saved under their real names, so they had nicknames instead," said Stooks. asserted
Stooks → have → nicknames
"William was 'Bobcat', Harry was 'Baz', and when Catherine joined the family, she became ‘Mrs. Bobcat.’ asserted
she → join → family
" Stooks told Fox News Digital on behalf of OLBG that only a limited number of staff were given the royals' phone numbers, which had to be kept a closely guarded secret. asserted
which → tell → numbers
"We had the family under different names, so that if anyone's phone was taken, the number could be differentiated," he explained. uncertain
he → have → names
"That way, no one knew which number was which. asserted
number → know → ?
They all change their numbers regularly, so I don't have any of their phone numbers now. asserted
I → change → numbers
" WATCH: ROYAL FAMILY'S CHEEKY NICKNAMES FOR EACH OTHER REVEALED " asserted
NICKNAMES → watch → OTHER
The nickname I gave to Harry on my phone was ‘Baz,’" Stooks shared. asserted
Stooks → give → phone
"He was always called ‘Baz’ by his friends, so I just took that. asserted
I → call → that
From memory, William was ‘Wombat,’ again because that is what his friends called him." asserted
friends → call → him
Fox News Digital reached out to Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace for comment. asserted
Digital → reach → comment
Stooks told GB News that the royal family "are big WhatsApp users." "He may have a lot of privilege, but William was never one to demand something from staff," Stooks told the outlet. uncertain
Stooks → tell → outlet
He would always check how busy I was before asking me to do errands for him. asserted
I → check → him
And whenever I said I would do something for William, he would always reply: 'You're a legend.' asserted
You → say → William
" "They have groups with their friends, and there is also a family group with the royal cousins, including Prince William, Zara Tindall, Peter Phillips and the York sisters," he continued. asserted
he → have → William
"They're very much like any other family when it comes to keeping in touch through their phones." asserted
it → come → phones
Several royal experts told Fox News Digital that members of the royal family have long used nicknames. asserted
members → tell → nicknames
Some are terms of affection, while others have reportedly been used as aliases for privacy or security. uncertain
others → use → privacy
"When they had a security issue, William and Kate are known as Danny Collins and Daphne Clark, DC," royal broadcaster Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News Digital. asserted
Turner → have → Digital
"In other words, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge," he said, referring to the Prince and Princess of Wales. asserted
he → say → Wales
"The late queen was always known as Sharon, believe it or not, just for the simple S, which stood for sovereign." asserted
which → know → sovereign
"King Charles and Queen Camilla, do they call themselves that? asserted
they → call → ?
No," said Turner. asserted
Turner → say → ?
"They call themselves Fred and Gladys. asserted
They → call → themselves
Because in the 1950s and 1960s, Prince Charles used to listen to a radio show each week called 'The Goon Show,' which was a comedy show where Fred and Gladys were called. asserted
Fred → use → show
When he started a romance with Queen Camilla, the joke started as well. asserted
joke → start → Camilla
That's where Fred and Gladys first started. asserted
Fred → start → ?
" "And then you would think, why on earth would the queen, Elizabeth that is, be called any other nickname other than Your Majesty?" he said. asserted
he → think → Majesty
"Prince Philip used to call the queen Cabbage." asserted
Philip → use → queen
British broadcaster Helena Chard told Fox News Digital that the name derived from the French "mon petit chou," or "my little cabbage." asserted
name → tell → chou
"I believe he also affectionately called her sausage," Chard added. asserted
Chard → believe → her
"When Prince William, as a little boy, fell at Buckingham Palace, he was overheard by a guest crying out, 'Gary! Gary!’" said British royals expert Hilary Fordwich. asserted
Fordwich → fall → Gary
"The Queen told the surprised guest, 'I'm Gary. asserted
I → tell → guest
He hasn't learned to say "Granny" yet.' asserted
He → learn → Granny
" Several royal experts noted that at university, William was known as "Steve" in an attempt to fly under the radar. asserted
William → note → radar
…and 21 more, not listed.
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