CBC Archives

You must sign in to leave a comment on this clip.

1979: Kissing a prince

Broadcast Date: April 1, 1979

Prince Charles has just arrived in Victoria, B.C., and is greeting the gathered crowd of Canadians as he gets off the plane. Out of the blue, an attractive young woman steals a kiss! The crowd applauds. "It didn't look as if anybody else was going to do it, and I really wanted to do it, so why not?" explains 22-year-old Kate Broke in this 1979 CBC News report.

1979: Kissing a prince

• The Prince of Wales visited Canada from April 1 to 7, 1979. His stops included Victoria, Yellowknife, Winnipeg, Toronto and Ottawa.

• The kiss from Kate Broke was discussed in a Globe and Mail article a few days later. Apparently, the prince was fine with the kiss until he found out it was simply a set-up for Broke's photographer boyfriend to get a good photo. As the prince's press secretary explained in the April 5, 1979 article, "The Prince of Wales always says he's happier being kissed than slapped, but does object when a kiss is arranged for the sake of a camera."

• Prince Charles was considered an eligible bachelor in 1979. He didn't become engaged to Lady Diana Spencer until February 1981.

1979: Kissing a prince

Medium: Television

Program: The National

Broadcast Date: April 1, 1979

Guest(s): Kate Broke, Prince Charles

Reporter: Colin Hoath

Duration: 1:39

Last updated:
Oct. 28, 2009