Working for the British Royal Family certainly has its perks. However, several former royal butlers have detailed their work experiences, including some seriously unexpected stories about serving members of the Royal Family.
In his book, The Royal Butler: My Remarkable Life in Royal Service, Grant Harrold revealed what happened when he met Prince Harry for the first time.
“I was in the kitchen one day, having a conversation with the chef, when someone appeared at the door and, without warning, threw a water balloon at me,” Harrold explained. “I did a double take. Okay, I thought, so this is happening.”
The former royal butler continued, “Prince Harry has just arrived home and I’m getting a water balloon thrown at me. Narrowly avoiding the first missile, I saw he was lining up another and instinctively dived into the larder at the back of the kitchen.”
Grant Harrold
‘The Royal Butler’
“[Prince Harry] appeared at the door and, without warning, threw a water balloon at me.”
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Finding himself in the middle of a water balloon fight, Harrold seemingly panicked when he realized he “was cornered.”
Per the butler, “I spied a small window about the size of a picture frame, with a net covering to stop flies coming in. Scarcely believing what I was doing, I removed the netting and somehow managed to crawl out of the window and ended up outside.”
Unfortunately for Harrold, leaving the house wasn’t enough to escape Prince Harry’s water balloon attack.
“But as soon as I hit the ground, a water balloon smacked me on the back, soaking my shirt,” he wrote. “I looked up to see that Harry had run upstairs and was throwing them from a window.”
“Sorry…I’m just being a bit silly.”
(Image credit: Getty Images)
When Harrold finally met Prince Harry, the young royal actually apologized, saying, “Sorry…I’m just being a bit silly,” according to the butler.
The former royal butler told the prince he didn’t mind at all, and the pair reportedly struck up a rapport. Basically, if you can survive a surprise water balloon attack, you’re going to be friends for life.
