Prince William Had a Heartbreaking Reason for Choosing His Childhood Dream Job

Princess Diana wearing a red cardigan over a white button up shirt sitting at a table playing a puzzle with a toddler Prince William

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 13 February 2025

Many little boys dream of becoming superheroes, race car drivers, or maybe even astronauts—but young Prince William had an entirely different career plan up his sleeve. Even though William knew he'd one day become the King, he cooked up a touching scheme to try and help his mother, Princess Diana instead.

According to royal biographer Andrew Morton (per the Mirror), the future Prince of Wales and his brother, Prince Harry, "were aware of their destiny."

Although the author didn't share how old William and Harry were at the time, he wrote that "the boys were discussing their futures with Diana" when William declared, "'When I grow up I want to be a policeman and look after you Mummy.'"

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Little brother Harry, however, pointed out the impossibility of William's sweet plan. "Quick as a flash Harry replied, with a note of triumph in his voice, 'Oh no you can't, you've got to be king'," Morton added.

Princess Diana leading Prince William, wearing a Mickey sweatshirt and black helmet, on a brown pony through grass — Princess Diana is seen leading Prince William on his pony at Highgrove House in 1986.

Even though he was a child, Prince William was likely well aware of the press intrusion that surrounded his family, especially Princess Diana, who died after being chased by paparazzi in 1997.

And although his dream job didn't pan out, it seems that the police idea carries on with Prince George, although thankfully, for a different reason.

The Prince of Wales once shared that his eldest son was "obsessed" with the police during a royal engagement. When a police commissioner joked, "We are recruiting, actually, so if George and Charlotte are keen?" Prince William revealed that his son was "obsessed, actually, by the police... cars, toys, everything."

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Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.