In this week's edition of little-known royal family facts, we're taking a closer look at the creative nicknames of Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla Parker Bowles.
As royal enthusiasts may already know, the couple's pet names for one another are Fred and Gladys (a fun little tidbit that was mentioned on Netflix's The Crown). But oddly enough, the meaning behind those names isn't as widely known. So, how exactly did the royal couple come up with these nicknames?
According to Slate, the unique names were actually inspired by The Goon Show, a British radio comedy series from the '50s that Prince Charles was a huge fan of. On the series, Gladys was an androgynous secretary who was known for the catchphrase, "Yes Darling!" Meanwhile, Fred Nurke was a minor character who appeared to have quite a few sneaky habits.
The couple's code names reportedly originated before Princess Diana and Prince Charles tied the knot in 1981. According to Andrew Morton, Diana’s biographer, the late royal reportedly discovered a golden bracelet with the initials "G & F" two weeks before her marriage to Prince Charles. And it didn't take long for her to put two and two together. Per Morton's book, Diana: Her True Story, the royal revealed that the duchess always wore this piece of jewelry. She said, "It's a gold chain bracelet with a blue enamel disc. It's got 'G and F' entwined in it, 'Gladys' and 'Fred'—they were their nicknames."
It's very likely that The Crown will further explore these details in the next season. And all we can say is: We're so ready for this.
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