Prince William & Kate Middleton Accidentally Make The Macrons' Latest Gaffe Look So Much Worse

King Charles III is hosting French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron in the U.K. for a three day visit, and they were met on the tarmac by William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales. This grand state visit started off a bit awkwardly for Emmanuel and Brigitte though, and it's not doing much to reassure the public of the strength of their relationship. In footage from their arrival, the French president walked down the narrow steps from the plane and turned to offer his hand to his wife. She ignored it. It's not quite so dramatic as the time that Melania Trump batted Donald Trump's hand away, but it's adding to the red flags that we've already spotted in Emmanuel and Brigitte's relationship.

"The most beautiful clothes that can dress a woman are the arms of the man she loves." 💗

— Christian @Dior #PrincessCatherine #PrincessofWales pic.twitter.com/NRRNkgcxID

— The British Prince (@freedom_007__) July 8, 2025

In contrast, later at Windsor Castle, William was spotted holding out his hand to help Kate down some steps, and she took it. It wasn't a big PDA moment between William and Kate, but it was a pretty clear contrast to Emmanuel and Brigitte's earlier interaction.

Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron had a much more tumultuous moment getting off a plane in Vietnam in May 2025. She was seen pushing his face away with both hands while they were in the plane, perhaps without realizing it would all be caught on camera. She then ignored his offered up hand as they walked down the steps. Is there a pattern forming? Emmanuel explained that moment by saying, "We are squabbling and, rather, joking with my wife," via AP News. 

All eyes were also on Catherine, Princess of Wales at the big event. After she canceled a scheduled appearance at the Royal Ascot in June 2025, Kate later revealed the challenges that come with recovering from cancer. She seemed in good health as she met the French president, but clearly you never know what's going on behind the scenes for anyone, princess or not. For the occasion, Kate was wearing jewelry that had previously belonged to Queen Elizabeth with her Christian Dior outfit. Dior is a famous French fashion house, and Kate has never publicly worn Dior before. So she was paying homage to the French guests as well as the U.K., and our guess is that she and William, Prince of Wales didn't mean to show up Brigitte and Emmanuel with their moment of hand holding.