Prince William Reveals His Dislike for Massive Wedding and Other Royal Wedding Secrets

Prince William, during a series of exclusive interviews with author and journalist Robert Hardman, has revealed some secrets about his royal wedding the world has desperately been waiting to hear.

The candid interviews were part of putting together a new book on the royal family, Our Queen, which arguably will be the most in-depth royal portrayal to be written in years.

Being down-to-earth amidst the royals, William and Kate couldn't stand the idea of a snobbish and massive wedding, the interview reveals. The future king of England said he was absolutely horrified seeing the list of guests who were to attend the wedding, because most of them were complete strangers to him.

William stated, I came into the first meeting for the wedding, post-engagement. And I was given this official list of 777 names - dignitaries, governors, all sorts of people - and not one person I knew. They said: 'These are the people we should invite.' I looked at it in absolute horror and said: 'I think we should start again.'

William, however, wanted Kate's opinion before dumping the list. I rang her up the next day and said: 'Do we need to be doing this?' And she said: 'No. Start with your friends first and then go from there.' And she told me to bin the list.

She made the point that there are certain times when you have to strike the right balance. And it's advice like that, which is really key, when you know that she's seen and done it before, William says.

The Prince isn't really keen about becoming the king one day, at least not at the moment. I try not to think about it, to be honest. As I'm flying along in my helicopter through the mountains of Wales, I try desperately hard not to think about it. That can wait until I'm a bit older.

William also talks about the strong bond he shares with grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, My relationship with my grandmother has gone from strength to strength, he says. As a shy, younger man it could be harder to talk about weighty matters. It was: This is my grandmother who is the Queen, and these are serious historical subjects.

As I've got older, she's become an even more important part of my life, so it's much easier. And obviously, with the wedding, she was a massive help.

William says that his grandmother never really enjoyed the spotlight. She cares not for celebrity, that's for sure, he says. That's not what monarchy's about. It's about setting examples. It's about doing one's duty, as she would say. It's about using your position for the good. It's about serving the country - and that really is the crux of it all.

Our Queen will be published by Hutchinson on Oct. 6 in the UK.