The TV Shows Royals Are Obsessed With

We see royals portrayed on TV shows. So, picturing them on the other side of the screen is pretty wild. It's also amusing to think that after a long day of, say, dealing with a state dinner, they probably also wonder: What should I watch next? Maybe a new show, a new season of a show they kept up with, or rewatch something. It has an ordinary ring to it, doesn't it? In 2026, Princess Catherine and Prince William were seen talking to "MasterChef: The Professionals" contestant Kim Innes at Borough Market. They were casually chatting (via humblecrumble) about how Innes got started on her Humble Crumble business journey, and Catherine asked her, "Have you done MasterChef?" To this, Innes responded, "I was on MasterChef last night," and Catherine said, "I watched it." Not long after, Prince William goes, "No way."

Speaking about TV shows, let's not forget that a member of the royal family was on one. Brownie points if you guessed Meghan Markle. In Prince Harry's memoir "Spare," he shared what happened when Princess Catherine and Prince William got to the bottom of who Prince Harry was dating at the time: Meghan Markle. Harry recalled, "Their mouths fell open. They turned to each other. Then Willy turned to me and said: 'F*** off?'" He added, "I was baffled until Willy and Kate explained that they were regular — nay, religious — viewers of 'Suits.'" In fact, several "Suits" cast members attended Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding. That said, we've barely scratched the surface of royal TV habits. So, let's take a look at what the royals are into.

The "Bridgerton" tea is so delicious that even Queen Camilla keeps up with the show. Queen Charlotte fits into the "Bridgerton" universe really well. So, you can't help but wonder what Camilla thinks while watching a fictional queen stir up drama on the show. That's something we might never know, but what we do know is that she "watched the first lot" of "Bridgerton" Season 3, according to Rebecca English's X video. If you were wondering when this came up, it was during Camilla's visit to the Bridgerton garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show back in 2024. As the Royal Horticultural Society explained, "The Bridgerton Garden is a secretive and secluded space, based on Penelope Featherington, a wallflower-like character from ... Bridgerton."

Ex-royal Sarah Ferguson, who has had a dramatic rise and fall, also sang the praises of the period romance drama while talking to Us Weekly. She shared, "I adored Bridgerton so much that I watched it twice, deliberately. I'm obsessed with it." Many "Bridgerton" fans seem to like or relate to at least one character in particular. Ferguson seems to be in the same boat. "I think Daphne is a terrific character, as we see her learning about life. I love the way she learns to use her strong voice. It chimed with me because now is the time for women to speak up," she added.

"Friends" seems to serve as a rite of initiation into pop culture for many young people, and even Prince Harry couldn't escape a "Friends" phase. In his memoir "Spare," Harry wrote about his discomfort with public life. The tragic truth of Prince Harry is quite sad. He described watching "Friends" as a kind of escape. "I had no choice: I began staying home. Day after day, night after night, I sat around eating takeaway, watching '24.' Or 'Friends.' I think I might've watched every episode of Friends in 2013," he explained.

Imagine meeting an actor from a show you really enjoy. Now imagine going to their home. Yes, Harry was that lucky. In Harry's aforementioned book, he also shared how he went to Courteney Cox's home to stay over when she was on a work trip. Cox, of course, played Monica Geller on "Friends." Things didn't go as planned, though. "Courteney turned up," Harry wrote. "I was very confused. ... Does this mean we have to leave? She [Courteney Cox] smiled. Of course not, Harry. Plenty of room."

Many who watch "Friends" tend to relate to a particular character on the show. For Harry, it was Chandler Bing. In "Spare," he went on to explain, "She [Courteney Cox] was Monica. And I was a Chandler. I wondered if I'd ever work up the courage to tell her. Was there enough tequila in California to get me that brave?" Although we don't know if Prince Harry ever told Cox that, he did talk about partying with her that day. That said, Courteney Cox pushed back at Prince Harry's claim in "Spare" that she had psychedelic mushrooms at the same party.

Remember when anyone who hadn't watched a new episode of "Game of Thrones" yet avoided spoilers like the plague? Not Prince William and Princess Catherine. Back in 2017, William and Catherine visited Germany in an official capacity. It was here that they met Tom Wlaschiha, whom you might know as Jaqen H'ghar from the show. As Wlaschiha explained (via The Christian Post), "They said they really liked 'Game of Thrones' and have watched every series." He added, "They wanted spoilers, but I said I couldn't tell them."

When William and Catherine were asked about their watchlist during a BBC Radio 1 appearance, "Game of Thrones" made the cut along with some other shows. William said, "'Game of Thrones' we've watched as well. Seems like everyone has watched 'Game of Thrones.'" When DJ Adele Roberts said she hadn't watched the show yet, William did the most fan thing possible: He tried to convince her to watch it. Who hasn't been talked into watching "Game of Thrones"? He went so far as to say, "Definitely watch 'Game of Thrones,' that's worth watching."

When King Charles III visited a local bookstore in Fowey, Cornwall back in 2018, he gave us a peek into his taste in TV shows. As ITV reported, when he spotted Winston Graham's novels [he authored the Poldark novels] in the store, he told the bookstore owners, "What I can't get over watching that 'Poldark' stuff on the television, is just how many he wrote."

Charles' interest in "Poldark" is particularly interesting because the storyline unfolds in Cornwall. Before becoming king, Charles himself was the Duke of Cornwall. Another reason is that in "Poldark," Ross Poldark's story has a complicated romantic angle wherein, as the The Guardian explained, "[Ross Poldark's] sweetheart is just about to marry his cousin. ... Poldark finds himself a street urchin servant boy ... oh, who turns out to be a girl. " Charles' own love life is said to be complicated. "Poldark" is not a royal biography, of course. It is a Cornish period drama. But the mix of duty, old attachments, and messy relationships makes his interest in the show feel a bit more layered.

Prince George has had an amazing transformation from baby to 12-year-old. Even though Prince George is second in line to the British throne, he is still a kid and enjoys watching cartoons like many children do. While on BBC Radio 1, Prince William, George's dad, spoke about how he has to watch "a lot of children's programs." If you've spent any time with a kid, you know how seriously they take their cartoons. In the same radio interview, William explained, "Some of them are really good, but you know you have to pretend you're really interested in it because George gets very upset if you're not showing due diligence to the characters." Turns out, even the future king can't zone out when his child's favorite show is going on. This tidbit makes them relatable, doesn't it?

In the aforementioned interview, William also shared that "'Fireman Sam' has taken an awful lot of [Prince George's] interest." The show's team later leaned into that royal connection and decided to create a royal-themed episode for the show's 30th anniversary. The idea came after they learned that Prince George liked the show. The show's senior producer, Ian McCue, told Express that when they found out that Prince George enjoys the show, they decided that "it would be really fun to actually bring the royal family to Pontypandy, and see how the community reacts to that, and we have a really fun story that we're going to be showing." As he also explained to the BBC (via Hello!), "We can't wait for fans to see the special royal episode."

Meghan Markle described "Jeopardy!" as her "favorite show growing up" on her podcast "Archetypes" (via Vanity Fair). Meghan's recollection of watching "Jeopardy!" has a hint of nostalgia to it. She remembered, "I would eat my dinner on a TV tray in front of the screen, watching each category and clue with bated breath and intense focus, trying to absorb whatever facts they were firing off in the form of a question."

Some shows become such an important part of people's lives that they feel a personal connection to the people on-screen. In the previously mentioned podcast episode, Meghan also shared how when a host of "Jeopardy!" died, those around her knew it would affect her given how big a deal the show was for her growing up. She said, "[W]hen Alex Trebek passed away, I started to receive texts of condolence. I didn't know him, but everyone who knew me knew how meaningful 'Jeopardy!' — and its host — were as a daily part of my life."

Princess Eugenie might be a real-life princess, but her taste in TV shows is far from soft and princessy. In a Harper's Bazaar interview, we got a glimpse inside Princess Eugenie's lavish royal lifestyle. She also took the interviewer through her daytime and nighttime routine. Speaking about her 10 p.m. routine if she's not busy, she said, "I cook and watch TV. It's very relaxed."

Although Eugenie described watching TV as a pretty laid-back activity, most of the shows that she named are anything but that. "At the moment I'm watching 'How to Get Away With Murder,'" she shared. "Viola Davis, she's insanely good — and 'Outlander,' my favorite. When I'm with [husband] Jack [Brooksbank], we watch 'The Walking Dead,' which we're obsessed with. Maybe 'Game of Thrones' is our next thing," she added.

That's not to say that the princess doesn't have range. After watching shows that require you to pay attention, it only makes sense that she has some light viewing on her list to unwind as well. Now, she's not a fan of reality TV, but she said, "I love cooking programs." Speaking like a foodie, she added, "Indulgences? Chips — fries, as you say — Diet Coke, nuts! Cashew nuts with mustard are the best."

Watching "The Crown" was entertaining for its many viewers. But imagine watching a show that not only heavily dramatizes your family's history, but also becomes a super popular show. Sounds absolutely terrifying. Considering all of this, if reports that Prince Edward and Duchess Sophie enjoyed "The Crown" wee in fact true, they're quite good sports.

The prince and duchess allegedly didn't just watch the show and keep it between them. They reportedly even went so far as to recommend it to the late Queen Elizabeth II, according to a Sunday Express source (via Marie Claire). It's like when we enjoy a show and ask our friends to watch it too, except the show here is based on the person's life. The aforementioned source told the same outlet (via Marie Claire) all about it: "It has been a long-standing arrangement that they drive to Windsor at the weekend to join the queen for an informal supper while watching TV or a film," they said. They have a Netflix account and urged her to watch it with them." Speaking about the late Queen's thoughts concerning the show, they also shared, "[S]he really liked it, although obviously there were some depictions of events that she found too heavily dramatized."

The late queen's husband, Prince Philip, likely didn't share Elizabeth II's reported openness toward "The Crown." Actor Matt Smith, who played the younger version of Prince Philip, shared with The Observer (via Marie Claire) that when Philip was asked whether he had watched "The Crown," he answered, "Don't be ridiculous."

During Centrepoint's 2019 charity meet, Prince William let slip in a conversation with "Strictly Come Dancing" judge Shirley Ballas that Princess Catherine enjoys the show. As Vanity Fair reported, this came up when Ballas asked William if he usually watched it. "I have watched the show a couple of times," he said. He then revealed, "Catherine is a huge fan and my mother-in-law loves it." That mother-in-law, of course, would be Carole Middleton, his wife's mum.

The "Strictly Come Dancing" fandom doesn't stop with Catherine and Carole Middleton. It seems to have passed down to another generation. Back in 2023, Catherine was allegedly accompanied by her kids Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis to the same dancing show's rehearsal. Speaking on this, an insider told The Sun, "Kate and Charlotte are huge fans of 'Strictly,' so they were delighted to be invited. ... Kate took pictures of the children in the judges' seats," they added.

Leave it to Prince William to surprise you with his watchlist, and surprise he does. Who would've thought that the future king is into "Killing Eve," a show Rotten Tomatoes describes as a spy thriller in which "Eve is tasked with hunting down the psychopathic assassin"? Prince William doesn't seem to be a casual viewer of the show either. When he met the producer and costume designer of the show at BAFTA Piccadilly in 2019, he ended up talking about the show. What's more? He was two seasons in at that point, which means the show likely piqued his interest. Producer Sally Woodward Gentle told reporters (via Woman & Home), "Apparently he has watched it all, we didn't test him, but he did say it was quite a final ending to Series 2. So at least he watched the last three minutes of the last episode!"

Costume designer Phoebe de Gaye also shared William's confession that he didn't understand the show at first. However, he eventually not only understood it but, as Gentle put it (via People), "He said he loved it." Speaking on the particulars of the show, Gentle revealed (via Woman & Home), "He talked about the dark humor of it, and Jodie and Sandra, how amazing they both are. And he talked about the humor you can get through the costumes." On the subject of costumes, William also got to take a keepsake with him: "a pair of Villanelle's [the show's antagonist] pajamas," as People reported