Kate Middleton is not a big fan of keeping her cellphone around
Kate Middleton may look effortlessly polished at public events, but behind palace doors, she is surprisingly relatable. Since joining the royal family after her engagement to Prince William in 2010, she has built a reputation thanks to her consistency in the British monarchy. Still, a 2020 parenting podcast appearance revealed a very human side.
Podcaster Giovanna Fletcher shared in an interview with The Times that the Princess of Wales is famously bad at keeping track of her phone and often loses it around the house. According to Fletcher, many of her Christmas gifts that year were playful reminders to help her stop losing it.
“She told me that she was notoriously bad at keeping an eye on her phone,” Giovanna revealed to The Times. “She always loses her phone. All of her Christmas presents that year were related to her keeping track of her phone… It was all about her not losing her phone.”
A bigger home, more cellphone problems!
This habit may have become even trickier since the family moved into Forest Lodge, their new home with eight bedrooms. More space means more corners, drawers, and wider locations for a missing phone. It is a very real problem, especially considering that their former residence, Adelaide Cottage, had just four rooms.
The Princess and Prince of Wales on the use of cellphones with their kids
Kate Middleton’s struggles with misplacing her cellphone also line up with her broader views on digital life. In October 2025, she published an essay titled The Power of Human Connection in a Distracted World, where she warned about excessive screen time.
Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales has written an essay titled 'The Power of Human Connection in a Distracted World'. In collaboration with @robertwaldinger. https://t.co/D2eidvCdxu pic.twitter.com/uHKaMRzkVb
— The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood (@Earlychildhood) October 9, 2025
“When we check our phones during conversations, scroll through social media during family dinners, or respond to e-mails while playing with our children, we’re not just being distracted, we are withdrawing the basic form of love that human connection requires,” the essay says.
The Princess and the Prince of Wales are also strict about limiting their children’s exposure to phones, even banning them entirely, as they revealed on the Apple TV+, The Reluctant Traveler in October last year.
“None of our children have any phones, which we’re very strict about.”
