Body language expert compares royals’ polo PDAs

When Harry stormed to victory at the Sentebale Polo Cup this week, he celebrated his win with a congratulatory kiss from his new wife.

The tender clinch, captured on camera for all the world to see, was notable for being the first time they have publicly locked lips since their wedding in May.

But it also had strong echoes of another famous PDA, more than 30 years after Harry’s parents puckered up at another charity polo match in Windsor – and the similarities haven’t gone unnoticed by fans.

In 1985, just nine months after Harry was born, a young Prince and Princess of Wales shared a kiss during the winners’ presentation at a charity match in Windsor. 

According to author and body language analyst Judi James, the couple’s respective smooches provide a unique opportunity to ‘study the state of royal relationships’.

She told MailOnline: ‘Windsor men like nothing better than strutting round in thigh-highs and white jeans to show off their alpha potential to their women on the polo field. 

‘This “reward” kiss comes during the trophy-giving ceremony and it gives us a chance to study the state of royal relationships during what are likely to be the only kissing PDAs outside the royal weddings.’

Charles and Diana: Tension and distance 

Harry and Meghan’s public embrace this week had strong echoes of the kiss shared between the Prince and Princess of Wales in June 1985. The couple were at a fundraising polo match in Windsor for Birthright when they shared the ‘tense’ exchange

‘Charles didn’t always fare as well as this with his polo kiss moments,’ says Judi. ‘The breakdown of his marriage to Diana was pretty much announced in neon when Diana swerved her head at the moment of kiss [in India in 1992], leaving her husband’s painfully pursed lips making contact with the side of her hair. 

‘There is a feeling in this pose that Diana was in distance-making mode though as her torso is partially turned towards the cameras and also held upright, rather than leaning in to make it easier for her slightly shorter husband to make contact. 

‘Her chin is also tilted up slightly and the effect can be seen in the muscle tension in Charles’s neck as he cranes his head out and upward to plant his kiss which lands on Diana’s lower lip rather than fully on her mouth. 

‘Diana is making him do most of the running here and we can see her cheeks rounded showing that she’s smiling, either from fun or embarrassment.

‘Charles has his hand firmly on the trophy here and Diana holds it with fingers splayed to suggest it’s only half as important to her.’

Harry and Meghan: Trust and synchronicity  

Meghan rewarded her husband Prince Harry with a kiss yesterday (26 July) after his team won the Sentebale Polo Cup in Berkshire, held to raise funds for the charity he founded to support children with HIV and Aids in Lesotho

Meghan rewarded her husband Prince Harry with a kiss yesterday (26 July) after his team won the Sentebale Polo Cup in Berkshire, held to raise funds for the charity he founded to support children with HIV and Aids in Lesotho

‘The newlyweds stand with their torsos turned out towards the cameras and Meghan’s only slightly angled towards Harry,’ says Judi. 

‘This should have made kissing comfortably a challenge but the mirroring between them creates some very relaxed and easy-going choreography for the couple, enabling them to lean their heads in to create a kiss that is both passionate and remarkably intimate.

‘Unlike Charles and Diana the moment is all about the kiss for this royal couple rather than the trophy, which is held into shot but apparently forgotten, implying Harry sees his kiss as a bigger reward than the actual prize. 

‘The couple link their inner arms around one another in a balanced and equal way and their outer arms remain straight, implying confidence.’

The couple's kiss yesterday afternoon in Windsor (26 July) showed that the honeymoon period between the newlyweds certainly hasn’t cooled off, according to body language analyst and author Judi James - who notes 'trust' and 'passion'

The couple’s kiss yesterday afternoon in Windsor (26 July) showed that the honeymoon period between the newlyweds certainly hasn’t cooled off, according to body language analyst and author Judi James – who notes ‘trust’ and ‘passion’

Harry's close friend Nacho was left playing the gooseberry as he tried to present Harry with the winner's trophy on Thursday. According to body language analyst, the couple's romantic clinch reveals they are still in the 'passionate phase'

Harry’s close friend Nacho was left playing the gooseberry as he tried to present Harry with the winner’s trophy on Thursday. According to body language analyst, the couple’s romantic clinch reveals they are still in the ‘passionate phase’

Vintage glamour: Meghan, 36, was channeling vintage glamour in a £2,357 navy dress by Carolina Herrera at the polo yesterday (26 July). According to Judi James, her 'neck-baring' gesture during the romantic clinch implies trust

Vintage glamour: Meghan, 36, was channeling vintage glamour in a £2,357 navy dress by Carolina Herrera at the polo yesterday (26 July). According to Judi James, her ‘neck-baring’ gesture during the romantic clinch implies trust

Judia adds: ‘There is no awkwardness with this kiss and their level of synchronicity suggests they are still in the stage known as passionate love, when you move alike and use subliminal mirroring without needing to think about it.

‘Unlike Diana’s upright pose Meghan has thrown her head back in a romantic signal of momentary submission so that Harry can lean his head down hero-style to plant his kiss on her lips. 

‘There is no sign of jokes or embarrassment here and the couple seem pleased to make up for the times recently when they have been far less tactile and more “royal” on formal events.

‘The way Meghan is baring her neck for the kiss implies trust. This neck-baring gesture was a feature of Diana’s body language during her kiss on the balcony on her wedding day.’ 



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