The little boy who grabbed the Princess of Wales’s Mulberry handbag is known as “The Hurricane” because he never stops and “he’s in everything,” according to his mother.
Daniel Williams, one, was with his mother Lucy, 30, when he started playing with the buckle on the Princess of Wales’s £695 bag as she chatted to the crowd in Aberfan, South Wales.
The Prince and Princess of Wales were visiting to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in the October 1966 coal tip landslide.
When Daniel suddenly reached for the handbag, Kate said, “It’s okay if he can have it.”
Mother-of-two Lucy, a nurse, said: ‘Princess Kate came over to talk to us and Daniel was a little restless.
Daniel Williams (left), one, was with his mother Lucy (centre), 30, when he started playing with the clasp of the Princess of Wales’s £695 bag as she chatted with the crowd in Aberfan, South Wales
The Princess of Wales laughed as she handed her Mulberry handbag to year-old Daniel Williams in Aberfan
“He was playing with the buckle on her handbag when he suddenly grabbed it from her.
Kate just laughed and said it’s hard to keep little ones entertained. You can keep it, I’ll get it back later.’
Lucy said Daniel was a curious child and she and her husband Jonathan, 33, have nicknamed him “Hurricane.”
“He’s like a whirlwind, always on the move and absorbed in everything,” she said.
Lucy said she has not delved into the contents of the royal accessory. “I didn’t think it was my place,” she said.
When asked if she had ever owned a Mulberry handbag herself, the NHS nurse replied: ‘Unfortunately not, they are quite expensive.’
Little Daniel, nicknamed ‘The Hurricaine’, is pictured with his family
The cheeky toddler refused to return the bag to the Princess of Wales during the walk and then dropped it
Lucy, who has a little girl, Lili, four, returned the bag to the princess, who continued her visit to the Aberfan Memorial Gardens, near Merthyr Tydfil.
Edinburgh-born Lucy, who works at Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil, said the new Princess of Wales was a big hit with everyone she met during the hour-long visit.
She said, “She was sweet, a real folk princess who knows what it’s like to entertain a child.
“She was very happy to give Daniel a few minutes.”
Speak against ITV newsLucy explained how Kate put her at ease in what could have been an embarrassing moment.
She explained, “I think she sympathized with how hard it is with kids. She said, “He can have it to play with, I’ll be back for it!” Like it was every other person on the street.”
The royal couple paid tribute at the scene of the tragedy that left 144 dead, including 116 children.
The couple were greeted at the scene by schoolchildren, while survivor Gaynor Madgwick showed Kate a number of newspaper clippings about previous royal visits to the area.
The Prince and Princess were then shown around the garden by one of the Aberfan survivors, David Davies, and Professor Peter Vaughan, Lord Lieutenant of Mid Glamorgan.
The royal couple also met trustees of the Aberfan Memorial Trust who are involved in the maintenance of the garden, as well as some of the ‘Aberfan Wives’, relatives of the children who died in the coal tip landslide.
The Prince and Princess were shown around the garden by survivor David, who was eight when the coal tip landslide occurred
